Cabbage - Masala Vada

Chana Vada, Masala Vada or Chana dal vada….is a favorite snack to many of us..it is yummy…. not alone as a snack, tastes great with rasam  - rice too !!

Along with all other ingredients, I decided to add Cabbage to make Masala Vada still more delicious ….

Masala vada

Ingredients :

Split Chickpea lentil / Chana Dal - 1 cup

Finely Chopped Cabbage - 1 cup

Chopped Coriander greens - 1/2 cup

Finely chopped green chili - 1 table spoon

Cumin / Jeera seeds - 1 table spoon

Fennel seeds / saunf - 1 tea spoon

Chopped ginger - 1 table spoon

Chopped Curry leaves - 2 table spoons

Dry red chili - 1

Salt - As per the taste 

Oil - to shallow fry the Masala Vada

Preparation :

- Soak the split chana dal in water for 3 to 4 hours & then strain out the water.

Cabbage Masala vada

- Finely chop the cabbage, green chili, ginger, curry leaves & coriander leaves.

- Add fennel seeds, chopped ginger & dry red chili to the soaked chickpeas and grind them all without adding any extra water.

NOTE : Don't have to grind the chana dal like a batter or fine paste, just grind it coarser.

Cabbage Masala Vada

- Add the chopped coriander leaves, curry leaves, green chili, cumin seeds & cabbage to the gound chana dal.

Masala Vada

- Add salt & all the ingredients with the ground chana dal and mix well.

Cabbage Msala Vada

- Heat the oil in the pan , don't need to deep fry the vada, shallow fry is also fine.

- Once the oil is hot, take small portions of chana dal mix, gently make a small patties and leave them in to the oil.

Masala Vada

- After frying on one side, carefully turn the vada on to the other side and fry the Masala Vada until they turn into nice golden brownish color and take them out.

Masala Vada

- Repeat the same ..until the Chana dal mix is over….

Cabbage Masala vada

And the Hot…Crispy..Golden Brownish & delicious Cabbage Masala Vada is ready to be enjoyed !!!

Tastes great with Coriander chutney or coconut chutney !

Try this & let me know :-) !!!!

Vegetable Fried Rice !

Lets try some Vegetable Fried Rice ..mmmmm...Indo - Chinese Style !!!

Vegetable Fried Rice

Ingredients :

Cooked / Steamed Rice - about 3 cups

Chopped Capsicum / Bell Peppers - 1 1/2 cup 

Diced Carrot - 1/2 cup

Diced Celery - 1/2 cup

Chopped Chives / Spring Onions - 3 table spoons

Chopped / Minced Ginger - 2 table spoons

Chopped / Minced Garlic cloves - 2 table spoons

Chopped Green chili - 2 table spoons

Hot Chilli sauce - 2 table spoons

Sweet & Sour sauce - 3 table spoons

Soy sauce - 1 table spoon

Vinegar - 1 table spoon

Oil - 3 to 4 table spoons (preferably sesame oil or you can use any oil of your choice)

Salt - As per the taste

Preparation:

- Chop all the vegetable into small pieces & I used tri color bell peppers or capsicum but, if you have only green capsicum..no problem :-)

Vegetable Fried Rice

- Also you can add cabbage, since, I don't have cabbage at home couldn't add.

- Heat the oil in the pan & slowly add all the chopped vegetable starting with mince ginger & garlic.

Vegetable Fried Rice 

- Add the salt & don't fry the vegetable too much, just give them a quick stir for 3 to 4 minutes.

Vegetable Fried Rice

- Add the soy sauce and give a quick stir. Try buying a less salt soy sauce.

Vegetable Fried Rice

- Add the hot chili sauce and sweet & sour sauce and stir well for 2 to 3 minutes.

Vegetable Fried Rice

- Lower the heat & add the vinegar and mix well and then add the steamed rice to the pan.

Vegetable Fried Rice

- Mix the rice with the vegetable seasoning well & adjust the salt and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, turn off the heat.

Indo - Chinese Style Vegetable Fried Rice is all ready to serve with steamed broccoli & fried chicken / fried cauliflower !!!!!

Check The Sauteed Chicken Fry Recipe

Vegetable Fried Rice

Sauteed Chicken Fry !

A simple & easy sautéed chicken fry recipe to make it as a side to any fried rice or just to snack on !!!

Check  The Indo-Chinese Vegetable Fried Rice Recipe

Sauteed Chicken Fry

Ingredients :

Diced Boneless Chicken - 1 lb
Turmeric powder - 1 tea spoon
Dry red chillies (crushed) - 3 to 4
Chopped Garlic cloves - 4 table spoons
Salt - about 1 tea spoon
Ground black peppers - 2  tea spoons
Coriander / Dhania powder - 1 table spoon
Cumin / Jeera powder - 1/2 table spoon
Oil - 1 table spoon
Chopped Chives / Spring onions - 1 table spoon (OPTIONAL)

Preparation :

- Wash the diced boneless chicken cubes thoroughly in the running water.
- Start adding all the ingredients to the chicken except the oil & chopped spring onions.

Sauteed Chicken fry

- Mix all the ingredients with chicken and keep it aside & let it marinate for 40 to 60 minutes.

Sauteed Chicken Fry

- After 60 minutes, chicken is well marinated with all the mixed ingredients and ready to go on to the hot pan :-) !!!

- Heat the oil in the pan and add the marinated chicken to the pan & let it fry under low to medium heat until it is cooked well.

Sauteed Chicken Fry

- This recipe requires a very minimal amount of oil, if you are fine using less oil you can add less than 1 table spoon of oil.

- Once the chicken is fried well, you can smell the nice smoky fried chicken and it tastes delicious !

Sauteed Chicken Fry

- Once done, turn off the heat and garnish with chopped chives !!!

Sauteed Chicken Fry is all set to go along with The Fried Rice or you can snack on it alone !!!

Strawberry - Chia seeds Cooler !

Just a few days away from  SUMMER 2015…rolling out a cool summer drink recipe for you all..here is The Strawberry - Chia seeds Cooler Recipe… try this recipe to quench your thirst on a hot summer day !!!

Strawberry & Chia seeds summer cooler

Ingredients :

Strawberries - 8 to 10

Sugar / honey - 2 table spoons

Chia seeds - 2 table spoons

Mint leaves - 4 to 5

Water - 2 to 3 cups

Preparation :

- Soak the chia seeds in a cup of water for 2 to 3 hours or overnight would also be fine.

Strawberry - Chia seeds cooler

- wash the strawberries and blend them with sugar or honey into a fine paste.

Strawberry - Chia seeds cooler

- Add the strawberry & sugar blend to the soaked chia seeds.

Strawberry - Chia seeds cooler

- Add one or two cups of water as per your preference.

Serve chilled Strawberry - Chia seeds Cooler with some strawberry chunks & top with crushed mint leaves…

Strawberry - Chia seeds Cooler 

Kulfi Recipe !

Kulfi….The Indian ' Ice Cream ' :-) remember the bell you hear down the lane when the kulfiwala..coming on the tricycle..in the summer evening !!!!! Let's dive in to the Chilled homemade Kulfi recipe…yummy yummy…kulfi in the tummy :-)

Kulfi

Ingredients:

Milk - 1 1/2 cups (whole milk)

Milk mawa powder - 1 Table spoon (OR) White bread - 1 slice

Sugar - 1 to 1 1/2 table spoon

Cardamom / Elaichi powder - 1/2 tea spoon

Saffron strands - 1/2 table spoon

Crushed pistachios - 2 table spoon

All purpose flour - 2 table spoons

Preparation:

- Take about 1/4 cup of milk, all purpose flour & milk mawa powder and whisk thoroughly & make a lumps free paste.

NOTE : If you don't have milk mawa powder use a slice of white bread, remove the brown wedges of the bread slice and grind along with the milk, all purpose flour.

Kulfi Recipe

- I used Milk mawa powder… make sure to use a grinder / blender if you are using a bread slice to make a smooth paste.

Kulfi Recipe

- Now start boiling the remaining milk under low to medium heat & keep stirring the milk so that it doesn't form a thick layer around the edges or at the bottom and will not burn.

- Add the sugar to the milk and bring it to a boil.

- Once the milk has boiled enough, reduce the heat to the lowest & add the paste which we prepared initially, keep stirring until the paste is well blended into the boiling milk. Thorough stirring is very important.

Kulfi Recipe

- Boil the mixture under low heat for 5 to 7 minutes (might take 10 min max) to get a nice texture.

- Add the saffron strands to boiling mixture and stir, it gives a nice hue to the kulfi.

Kulfi

- Add the cardamom / elaichi powder to the mixture and stir well.

Kulfi Recipe

- Make sure to keep stirring while it is cooking.

- After 5 to 7 minutes you notice the nice color & thickening of the mixture and almost done.. KULFI !!

- Turn off the heat & add the crushed pistachios to the kulfi and let the kulfi mixture to come down to the room temperature.

KULFI

- Once it has come to the room temperature, transfer it into any mold or popsicle molds. You can also use paper cups as well.

Kulfi

- Fill the cup / mold and cover it with a cling wrap and keep it in a freezer preferably upto 4 hours.

Kulfi

- If you are going to use it next day, leave the kulfi in the freezer & move it to the refrigerator for 30 to 40 minutes before serving, so that Kulfi won't be too hard.

Kulfi

- Cut open the paper cup, before serving….& serve it along with a slice of Mango !!!!

Enjoy the yummy yummy KULFI with a slice of ripped Mango …. you will love it…...

KULFI

Stuffed Bitter Gourd Pan Fry !

Stuffed Karela / Bitter Gourd / Kakarakaya Fry… brings us a quick glimpse of Stuffing the bitter gourd with masala and tying it with thread or something so that masala don't spill out and then deep frying..Isn't it ? !! I appreciate the taste and efforts it takes but avoiding deep frying and lots of oil and all..try this way…you will sure like it …the lighter way of Stuffed Kakarakaya pan fry..all that you need is a flat bottomed shallow frying pan rather than concave bottomed frying pan…

Stuffed Bitter gourd fry

Ingredients :

Karela / Bitter Gourd / Kakarakaya - 3 to 4 small to medium sized 

Red Chilli Powder - 1 1/2 table spoon

Jeera / Cumin powder - 1 table spoon

Dhaniya / Coriander powder - 1 table spoon

Turmeric powder - 1 tea spoon

Oil - 4 to 5 table spoons

Water - 1/2 cup to 1 cup

Roasted peanuts - 2 table spoons

Dalia / Split roasted chickpea / chutney pappu - 2 table spoons

Dry coconut (grated) - 1 table spoon

Garlic cloves - 1 to 2

Curry Leaves - 4 to 5

Salt - As per the taste ( about 1 table spoon )

Preparation :

- Choose small to medium sized karela (depends on the pan size & use flat bottomed frying pan)

- Wash the karela & remove the stem and I usually don't peel off the skin but if you prefer peel off the skin.

Guthi kakarakaya fry

- In a pan add 1/2 cup to 1 cup of water and boil the karela covering with a lid, under slow to medium heat.

Stuffed kakarakaya fry

- Let the bitter gourd be boiled & meanwhile grind the masala.

Stuffed Karela fry 

- Roast the peanuts and grind them along with garlic cloves, grated dry coconut powder & split roasted chickpea (dalia).

Kakarakaya guthi fry

- In about 7 to 10 minutes the bitter gourd must had been boiled well. Turn off the heat and keep them aside.

Stuffed Bitter gourd fry

- Heat 3 tables spoons of oil in a pan and add the curry leaves and fry.

Guthi kakarakaya fry

- Slow down the heat and start adding, red chili powder, jeera powder, dhania powder, turmeric powder & ground masala powder to the pan and fry the stuffing masala on low heat without burning.

stuffed kakarakaya fry

- Fry the masala for 1 to 2 minutes and add the salt to the masala.

Stuffed karela fry

- Now the masala is ready, we have to stuff the bitter gourd with the masala.

Stuffed kakarakaya fry

- Carefully slit the boiled bitter gourd and start stuffing with the masala.

Stuffed kakarakaya fry

- Stuff all the bitter gourd with the masala.

- Heat the remaining oil in the pan and place all the stuffed bitter gourd in the pan.

Stuffed Bitter gourd fry

- Cook on the low to medium heat & after few minutes slowly turn the stuffed karela on to the other side but this is not a necessary step, because already masala is fried and bitter gourd is cooked.

Stuffed Bitter gourd fry

- After 5 minutes, the stuffed bitter gourd pan fry is ready !

Guthi Kakarakaya fry