Tomato Chutney

To go along with the Aval Idli/Dosa in my previous post, I decided to make something colorful and spicy. So, here goes the spicy tomato chutney!
Ingredients:
1. Tomato - 2 nos finely chopped
2. Onion - 1 medium, finely chopped
3. Red Chillis - 3 nos
4. Ginger to taste
5. Salt to taste
6. Urad Dhal - 1 tsp

Method de Preparation:
1. On a tava, in 1 tsp of oil, roast urad dhal till light brown. Add the red chillis and ginger and fry them.
2. Add the onions and tomato and fry them till the raw smell of onion goes away.
3. In a mixer, grind the fried onions and tomato mix. Add salt to taste.

It is ready to enjoy now. Serve with idli/dosa!

Bon app!

Kadalai Maavu Chutney

My hubby's favorite side dish. It is simple to make and extremely tasty! My MIL's recipe passed down to her by her MIL..so I guess, sorta family recipe..enjoy!

Ingredients:
1. Besan/Kadalai Maavu - 2 tsp
2. Capsicum(red/green)/Bell Pepper - 1 nos finely chopped
3. Gingelly Oil - 1 tsp
4. Asafoetida - 1 pinch

Method de preparation:
1. Heat gingelly oil in a tava. Add asafoetida and finely chopped bell pepper and fry well
2. Once the bell pepper is semi cooked (in about 4 mins), mix besan with 1 cup of water. The mix should be thin consistency.
3. Add the besan water and cook well. Keep stirring the mix frequently so that the bottom doesn't burn.
4. In about 6 mins, the mix will start browning. It is time to enjoy!

This chutney goes well with Roti/Parata/Dosa
Bon App!

Twist on a Chutney

Last week, my dear husband decided to get down and turn kitchen into his creative workshop. We both enjoyed a wonderful dinner of Sathamudhu (that is the iyengar speak for Rasam), a brinjal subzi and rice (he added some cloves and bay leaves while cooking..hmm interesting!). As usual, there was some left over subzi. Usually with brinjal, I find it hard to repeat the item for another meal. Added to that, my husband doesn't exactly like brinjals. He had made them the other day simply because the pantry was empty :). So I spruced up a quick side dish for delish dosas or idlis or any snack!
Ingredients:
1. Brinjal - one big size
2. Red Capsicum - 2 big/3 medium size
3. Green chillis
4. Asafoetida
5. Ginger - optional
6. Curry leaves
7. Urad dhal - 1 tsp
8. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Method de Preparation:
1. Roast the big brinjal either on the stove or in the oven. While making it in the oven, I usually coat the skin with some oil and leave it on 400 F for 5 mins. Ensure all sides are evenly cooked
2. Skin the brinjal and mash it with some salt and drop it into a mixer
3. Heat some oil in a pan, add asafoetida poweder and then urad dhal. Roast till light brown
4. Add the red capsicum and fry till you get the scent of capsicum. You can add the capsicum seeds also
5. Add the slightly cooked capsicum to the mashed brinjal in the mixer
6. Add chopped green chillis, ginger
7. Grind into paste
8. Heat some oil on the tava. Splutter mustard seeds, curry leaves and add to the ground paste.

Serve with any south indian tiffin or snack

Bon App!

ps: I haven't tried it with tamarind, but you can add some tamarind paste too for a tangy flavor!

Red Capsicum Chutney

Ingredients
1. Red Capsicum(large) - 3 nos
2. Tomatoes or Tomato Paste
3. Mustard Seeds
4. Gingelly Oil
5. Urad Dhal - 1 tsp
6. Chilli Powder
7. Asafoetida
8. Curry leaves (Optional)
9. Bengal Gram Dhal - 1 tsp (Optional)
10. Vendiyam Seeds
11. Tamarind (Optional)
12. Salt to taste

Method de Preparation
1. Cut capsicum into fine small pieces.
2. Heat 2 tbsp Gingelly oil in a tava. Splutter mustard seeds when oil is hot
3. Add curry leaves, urad dhal, vendiyam seeds and the bengal gram dhal, a tsp of asafoetida and fry
4. When urad dhal is light brown, add the tomato puree(thick) or tomato paste
5. Mix the paste well with the other ingredients. You can add some water if the paste is too thick. Alternatively, if you like the sour taste, you can prepare tamarind water and add it too. I prefer it without tamarind
6. Add red capsicum when the tomato starts getting a cooked smell. The capsicum can be added with the seeds.
7. Simmer and let it cook on low flame. Cover the vessel with a lid. The capsicum needs to cook till soft, not get fried in the heat.
8. Add Chilli Powder to suit your spicy taste and continue to cook. Make sure you regularly mix the chutney to ensure it is cooked evenly. Add salt to taste
9. Turn off after 15 mins.
The chutney can be mixed with rice or eaten with any snacks (from idlis to samosas)
Enjoy!
Bon App!

Green Coconut Chutney

My MIL found the coconut we get here not too tasty to make a good coconut chutney. She produced her interesting twist to a coconut chutney.
Ingredients:
1. Grated coconut - 1 cup
2. Green chillis - 2 nos
3. Red chillis (optional) - 1 nos
4. Coriander leaves
5. Curry leaves
6. Udaicha Kadalai/pottu kadalai (fried gram dhal) - 1 tbsp
7. Peanuts (optional)
8. Oil
9. Salt to taste

Method de preparation
1. Heat some oil in a tava and add red chillis, curry leaves, pottu kadalai, peanuts, red chillis and fry for couple of mins. Lets call this the roasted lot
2. In a mixie, add the grated coconut, green chillis, salt to taste, corriander leaves and the roasted lot and grind it with some water(if required). The chutney needn't be completely smooth. It is tasty even when it is slightly coarse.

That's it! Bon App!

Chow Chow thol thogayal

Ingredients:
Chouchou Thol (Chayote Skin)
Urad Dhal - 2 tablespoons
Curry Leaves - 8 to 10 leaves
Asafoetida
Red Chillis (to taste) - 3 to 4
Corriander leaves or mint leaves
Mustard seeds - one teaspoon
Grated coconut - one handful
Tamarind paste - 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste

Method de preparation:
1. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil and add asafoetida to the hot oil.
2. Splutter urad dhal.
3. Add the red chillis, curry leaves.
4. Add the chouchou skin, tamarind paste/piece and grated coconut and turn it around for 3 minutes
5. Grind the above in a mixer with corriander or mint leaves. Add salt while grinding
6. Splutter some mustard seeds in oil and add the ground paste. Take it off the heat right away
Ready to eat!
Bon App!

Brinjal Pachadi!

It might sound funny and not so tasty, but trust me, it can make even brinjal(aka Eggplant) haters slurp it up. Here is the trick to this tasty treat:
Ingredients:
Brinjal (Eggplant) - small round type - 2 nos
Dhania Powder - 1 tsp
Jeera Powder - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 4 leaves
Urad dhal - 1 tsp
Curd/Butter milk - 1 cup
Oil to fry them all
Salt to taste

Method of Preparation
1. Microwave the brinjals for about 4 mins. Check for the consistency. They should be soft and mashable
2. Take out of microwave, mash it
3. Add the dhania, jeera and curry leaves to the mash
4. Heat a little oil in a pan, splutter the urad dhal and add the mash and lightly fry the mix
5. After letting the mash up cool, add the mash to the cup of curd/buttermilk.
6. Add salt to taste
Yummo!
I have this recipe for the small brinjals. You can alternatively grill the bigger brinjal and mash it with or without the skin. Let me know how it went!
Bon App!