Alu palak majjige huli

Majjige huli is a traditional dish, a kind of sambar made without toor dal. Sour curds are used to get the sour tangy taste. It can be made using pumpkin and greens. More popular version is made using pumpkins or mangalore cucumber.

I once had this really different majjige  huli made from potato and palak (spinach). It tasted really good and the combination was awesome. I had been planning to make it at home since the day i had it, but somehow the time had not come.. One fine day when i almost ran out of veggies stock in my fridge, except potatoes i remembered i had to try this. I got a bunch of fresh palak leaves after dropping my son at school.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4


Ingredients: 

1. Potatoes 4-5
2. Palak leaves a bunch
3. Grated fresh coconut 1/2 cup
4. Jeera seeds 1tbsp
5. Ginger a little
6. Salt
7. Oil
8. Turmeric 1/2tsp
9. Coriander leaves a little
10. Green chillies 8-10 (depending upon their hotness)
11. Mustard seeds 1tsp
12. Dry red chillies 2nos
13. Chana dal 1.5 tbsp
14. Rice 1/2tbsp
15. Water
16. Sour curds 1 cup

Method:

1. Wash the palak thoroughly, chop them and keep aside. Cut the potatoes into cubes.
2. Soak the chana dal and rice for about 1/2 hour.
3. Cook the potatoes first, when half done add the palak (palak cooks early)
4. Grind coconut with ginger, green chillies, jeera seeds, coriander leaves, soaked chana dal, rice and turmeric powder to a fine paste. Make sure its not too watery.
5. Add this to the cooked alu and palak. Mix well.
6. Add salt and let it cook for about 3-4 minutes.
7. Now add the sour curds, and a little water if its too thick, mix well.
8. Let it cook for about 4-5 minutes on low flame.
9. Make seasoning of mustard seeds and dry red chillies.
10. Serve hot with rice.. Tastes best when had with puliogare.

Stuffed brinjal (Badanekyi tumbugayi)

Making stuffed brinjals for chapathi is definitely a weekend plan or something for the night dinner, when people at home can relish it with more time and for those who cook it as well. It's a little lengthier process, but the result is a yummy dish.

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients: 

1. 3/4kg of purple brinjals (small ones)
2. Mustard seeds 1tsp
3. Jeera seeds 1tsp
4. Poppy seeds 1/2tsp
5. Dry grated coconut 1/2 cup
6. Dry red chillies (guntur and byadagi) 5 each
7. Pepper corns 5-6
8. Methi seeds 1/4tsp
9. Chana dal 1tsp
10. urad dal 1tsp
11. Dhania seeds 1.5tsp
12. Water
13. Salt
14. Oil
15. Tamarind about a lemon's size



Method: 

1. Wash the brinjals and cut their crown, slit them into 4 (not fully)
2. In a kadhai heat 1tsp of oil and roast methi seeds, pepper corns, poppy seeds, chana dal, urad dal, jeera sseds and dhania seeds. Also the dry red chillies.
3. Grind them with dry grated coconut to a powder (don't add water)
4. Now fill some of this powder into the slit brinjals.
5. Heat about 4tbsp of oil in a kadhai and make seasoning of mustard seeds.
6. Add the stuffed brinjals, a liitle water, cover and cook till they turn tender.
7. Then add the ground powder, salt and squeeze the tamarind juice.
8. Mix well, add some more of the powder, water to required consistency and cook for about 4-5 minutes on low flame.

You can substitute groundnut powder in place of poppy seeds, taste will however differ a little.

9. Serve hot with chapathi/jolada rotti.

5 minute omelette in a coffee mug

We're pure vegetarians by birth, but as a kid my mom made sure i got the necessary proteins.. So she made sure that i had eggs almost daily, she would not cook it for me, but i used to go this creche managed by Christians, who even owned a bakery.. so it was my mom's standing instructions to give me an omelette almost daily. So that's how i got used to eating eggs, and I loved the omelette that aunty at my creche made.. i still remember that aroma, i would gulp it down in moments.. but i did not like boiled egg much..

So when it came to giving my son the proteins required, i did cook him omelette's and boiled eggs myself.. to my surprise my hubby made the best omelette for me during pregnancy, very similar to the one i used to have at the creche, so i did learn a bit from him..

It was a rainy evening and i was really hungry, had some eggs in the fridge which i had got for baking eggs, but used them for this.. I wanted to make bread omelette, ended up making just omelette.. my son enjoyed with lots of tomato sauce.. :)

I follow this food community called Etable, on whose blog i saw making omelette's in a coffee mug and that too in five minutes flat.. I had to try this... 

Preparation time: 3 minutes
Cooking time: 2 minutes
Serves: 1

Ingredients: 

1. Eggs 1nos
2. Onions 1nos
3. Green chillies 1 finely chopped
4. Salt to taste
5. Maida 1.5tsp
6. Oil/butter 1tbsp
7. Coriander leaves a little

Method: 

1. Break the eggs and beat it well. 
2. Add onions, green chillies, salt, oil, coriander leaves and maida and mix well so that no lumps are formed. 
3. Pour them into a microwave sup coffee mug, fill only half of the mug. 

4. Put in the oven at high power for about 1 to 1.5 minutes (or till its done). 
5. The omelette will rise up in between, but dont fret once its out of the oven it goes down. 
6. Check for doneness and let it stand for about 30 seconds in the oven. 
7. Serve hot.. 

You can any veggies to make it more healthy, or even add cheese to it. 

Omelette

We're pure vegetarians by birth, but as a kid my mom made sure i got the necessary proteins.. So she made sure that i had eggs almost daily, she would not cook it for me, but i used to go this creche managed by Christians, who even owned a bakery.. so it was my mom's standing instructions to give me an omelette almost daily. So that's how i got used to eating eggs, and I loved the omelette that aunty at my creche made.. i still remember that aroma, i would gulp it down in moments.. but i did not like boiled egg much..

So when it came to giving my son the proteins required, i did cook him omelette's and boiled eggs myself.. to my surprise my hubby made the best omelette for me during pregnancy, very similar to the one i used to have at the creche, so i did learn a bit from him..

It was a rainy evening and i was really hungry, had some eggs in the fridge which i had got for baking eggs, but used them for this.. I wanted to make bread omelette, ended up making just omelette.. my son enjoyed with lots of tomato sauce.. :)


Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 3-4 minutes


Ingredients:

1. Eggs 2nos
2. Onions 1nos
3. Green chillies 2nos
4. Salt to taste
5. Oil


Method: 

1. Break the eggs and beat them well, add chopped onions, salt, green chillies and mix well.
2. Heat a tava, spread some oil over it.
3. Add in the egg mixture and spread it around rotating the tava.
4. Add a little more oil in the corners and let it cook.
5. Turn over and cook for a while.
6. Serve hot with tomato sauce/ketchup..

Brinjal (badanekeyi) gojju

There are a lot of people who don't like eating brinjals, especially the purple ones, since they think it sour, but when the gravy is made this way i guess many people can't even guess its brinjals.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients: 

1. Purple brinjals 1/2kg
2. Onions 3-4
3. Green chillies 5-6
4. Curry leaves a few
5. Oil
6. Salt
7. Tamarind a lemon's size
8. Rasam powder 1 to 1.5tbsp
9. Coriander leaves a little
10. Grated coconut 1/4 cup
11. Water
12. Turmeric powder 1tsp
13. Mustard seeds 1tsp
14. Jaggery 2tbsp

Method: 

1. Wash the brinjals, and slit thiem into half. Cook them in pressure cooker up to 2 whistles and let the cooker cool.
2. In the meanwhile, chop onions and keep aside.
3. Heat oil in a kadhai and make seasoning of mustard seeds, green chillies and curry leaves.
4. Add onions, turmeric powder and saute till onions turn golden.
5. Now add the cooked brinjals, rasam powder (add the required quantity of rasam powder depending upon the hotness of the powder)
6. Add water if required and bring it to a boil. Add salt and mix well.
7. Now squeeze the juice of tamarind and mix well. Add jaggery and mix. Let it melt.
8. Cook for about 3-4 minutes.
9. Add grated coconut, garnish with coriander leaves and serve with chapathi/rice.