Gulab jamun (made with kowa)

Recipe type- dessert
Cuisine- Indian

Ingredients

Kowa- half kilo
Maida (all purpose flour)- 100 gms
Soda (edible)- pinch
Jhaji kaya- pinch
Jha patri- pinch
Sugar- 1 kg
Water-3/4 glass for each 1 glass sugar
Cardomom powder
Dry fruits (fried)

Method

Mix maida to kowa and knead to make a dough.

Add cardomom powder, jhaji kaya, jha patri- to the dough.

Now make small balls placing dry fruits which are friend in the middle of the balls.

Heat oil and drop few of balls fry in low flame, always deep fry balls so the middle of them is properly cooked.

Make sure the balls don't break while frying.

Now make sugar syrup by mixing sugar in water and then boil until you get single string syrup.

Drop all the balls in sugar syrup.

Serve hot or with ice cream.

Drumsticks pappu charu/ drumsticks dal

Recipe type: Main course
Cuisine: Indian
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

1 cup toor dal/kandhi pappu
1 medium lemon size tamarind extracted pulp
3 tbsp oil
Few mustard seeds and jeelakara
2-3 slit green chillies
7-8 curry leaves
Few coriander leaves
3-4 medium size tomatoes chopped
3 drumsticks finely cut into long pieces
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 cups water(approx...)
salt -to taste

1. Boil toor Dal in pressure cooker by adding Dal, salt to taste and cup of water. See that Dal has become soft.

2. Mash Dal into fine paste with mash equipment.

3. Take a pan add oil let it boil and add mustard seeds along with jeelakara.

4. Add slit green chillies, coriander leaves, curry leaves, tomatoes, drumsticks to the pan.

5. Add turmeric, chilli powder to the mixture and add sufficient water.

6. Drumsticks should be cooked completely.

7. Then add tamarind pulp to the pan and cook for 5 minutes.

8. Add cooked toor Dal to the mixture and let it boil for 5 minutes but see that it is not over cooked.

Note: in place of drumsticks raddish or dosakaya can be added to the recipe.

Polelu (Bakshalu)

Different names for this tasty dish in different states of India. So here in the Telugu speaking states we call it as Polelu or Bakshalu and is prepared as a festival dish on Ugadi. Let's have  a look how it is prepared.

Ingredients

Whole wheat flour 2 cups
Split Bengal gram (chanaga pappu/ chana dal) boiled 1 cup
Jaggery 1 cup
Soumph powder 1 tablespoon
Oil for cooking
Pure ghee 1/2 cup

Method

Wash and soak Bengal gram for 3 to 4 hours then cook it in cooker by adding water to dal for about 2 whistles.

Take a pan and add bengal dal (boiled), add jaggery to it and cook it till both are mixed well. Then grind the mixture to make a stuffing. add Soumph powder and mix well. So the stuffing is ready.

Make a semi-soft dough of wheat flour by adding oil and sufficient water.

Divide dough into equal portions and shape them into balls.

Spread each ball and put a large portion of puran in it and seal it into a ball.

By using little flour, oil press and roll out the ball into roti. Similarly make other bakshalu.

Heat a tawa place polee(baksham) on it and cook till it turns golden on both sides by adding ghee/oil.

Pour ghee on polelu it enhances the taste and serve hot.

Vermicelli upma

Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 15 mins
Total time: 25 mins

Author: Rajyasree
Recipe type: Breakfast
Cuisine: Indian
Serves: 2

INGREDIENTS

Vermicelli- 1 cup
Ghee- 1 tbsp
Oil- 3 tbsp
Cumin seeds- 1/2 tbsp
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tbsp
Clove- 2
Cinnamon stick -1
Cardomom- 1
Onion- 1 big one
Green chilies- 3-4
Mint leaves- as your wish for taste
Coriander leaves- for garnish
Water- 2 cups
Turmeric- 1/4 tbsp
Tomatoes- 2
Potatoes-2
Carrots-2
Beans- 3-4
Green peas- half cup

METHOD

1. Take ghee in a pan and add vermicelli, saute until they turn golden. Then keep them aside in a bowl.

2. In the same pan add oil and heat. Add cumin, mustard seeds, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom to it.

3. Add onions and saute till they turn translucent. Add tomatoes and saute till they become soft. Add other chopped vegetables and mint leaves.

4. Add water and salt to taste. Let it cook until all vegetables are cooked properly.

5. Now add fried vermicelli to the mixture, can add  little water if required and cook until water evaporates from the dish.

6. Serve hot.

Pav Bhaji

Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Total time: 40 mins


Author: Rajyasree
Recipe type: street food
Cuisine: Indian
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

Potatoes 4 medium
Tomatoes 4 medium
Cauliflower 1/4 small
Onions 2 medium
Ginger 1 inch piece
Garlic 8-10 cloves
Green capsicum 1 medium
Green chillies 3-4
Fresh coriander leaves 1/4 cup
Green peas shelled 1/4 cup
Lemons 2
Oil 3 tablespoons
Salt to taste
Pav bhaji masala 1 1/2 tablespoon
Butter 3 tablespoons
Pav 8

For Pav Bhaji Masala:
Whole red dry chillies 7
Coriander seeds 4 tablespoons
Cumin seeds 2 tablespoons
black pepper 1/4 tablespoon
Cinnamon stick 1/2 inch
Cloves 3
black cardamom  4-5
Dry mango powder 2 tablespoons
Fennel seeds (Soumph) 1 tablespoon

METHOD

Masala:
1. Take a pan, dry roast all the ingredients except dry mango powder for few minutes till it turns golden brown and nice aroma is released on a low medium flame.
2. Then add dry mango powder (Amchur) and roast for a moment.
3. Cool down the mixture completely then grind it to a fine powder in a grinder.
4. Store in an airtight container to use in future.

Pav Bhaji:

1. Boil, cool, peel and grate potatoes. Boil green peas in salted water till it becomes soft and then mash lightly.
2. Finely chop tomatoes, onions, capsicum, green chillies, coriander leaves.
3. Grate cauliflower and then grind ginger, garlic to fine paste. Cut lemon into wedges.
4. Heat oil in a pan and add three fourth quantity of chopped onions. Saute till they light brown.
5. Add chopped green chillies and ginger garlic paste. Stir fry for half a minute.
6. Add half quantity of chopped tomatoes and cook in medium flame. Stir continuously till oil separates from the masala.
7. Add chopped capsicum, mashed peas, grated cauliflower and potatoes. press till all the vegetables are completely mashed.
8. Add pav bhaji masala, salt and rest of the chopped tomatoes, cook on medium flame for two minutes.
9. Heat half of the butter on a tawa. Slice pav horizontally into two and fry in butter for half a minute till pav is crisp and turns into light brown.
10. Garnish the bhajee with chopped coriander leaves, remaining butter and serve hot accompanied with remaining chopped onion and lemon wedges.