Green Chillies Chutney

My granny used to make this to eat it with vadas(garelu) and it is my mom's favourite chutney.

Ingredients:-

Green chillies fresh 10

Tamarind small pc

Ginger 1/2' pc

Salt as per taste

Method:-

Grind all the above ingredients preferably in a stone mortar with pestel.Serve with Vadas(garelu)

Uppu Mirapakaya (Curd Chillies)

This is in continuation with my earlier post about the things which we do in summer and which is stored for a year and used through out the year.One such food is uppu mirapakaya/Majiga mirapakaya/curd chillies.It is a lengthy process but worth preparing it.It goes very well with hot rice and dal.And i love to eat with curd rice.Once again i didn't do this,my mom did for me.

Ingredients:-

Big green chillies 100gms

Butter milk 5 cups

Salt

Sun (yes you need bright hot sun for the chillies to dry)

Method:-

Fresh green chillies

Slit the green chillies

Green chillies soaked in the buttermilk

Green chillies soaked for 24hours (they change colour)

Dry them in the hot sun on a cloth or on a plastic paper.It is best on the cloth because we share our terrace i had to opt for plastic paper as the cloth leaves mark on the terrace.

Evening get them back.And again dry them for another day on the plastic sheet.

Dry them in a similar way for another 2 days and they become crispy.

Store in a air tight container.

Deep fry them and serve it with hot rice and sambar.

Jeera Alu

Method:-

Boiled potatoes 3

Cumin powder 1 tbsp

Red chilly powder 1/2tsp

Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp

Garlic crushed 2

Salt as per taste

For seasoning

Oil 1 tbsp

Rai 1/2 tsp

Udat dal 2 tbsp

Curry leaves few

Method:-

Cut the boiled potatoes into pieces.

Heat oil and add all the seasonings.When they splutter add crushed garlic.Saute till garlic changes colour.

Next add the boiled potatoes.Sprinkle cumin (jeera) powder,turmeric powder and salt.Mix throughly without mashing the boiled potatoes.

Lastly add red chilly powder and serve hot with roti or as a side dish for rice.

Red Chilly Powder

When summer starts all mom's are busy making the things which can be stored for a year like Red chilly powder,mango pickle,vadiyalu,uppu mirapakaya(curd chillies),appadalu(papads) etc.This practice of making the things has been passed to one generation to other.I never learnt what my mom learnt from my grandmother cause i am lazy and my mom is there to send me all very year after my marriage.One such thing is red chilly powder.This powder she does every year and can be stored for one year.And this is used in everyday cooking like a normal chilly powder in curries and pachadis.

I am planning to do few post of what we prepare in summer to be stored for year long.I invite you all to share your summer specials here in my blog,you can mail me your interest to varu012@gmail.com.

Ingredients:-

Red chillies whole 1 kg

Cumin seeds 100gms

Coriander seeds 200 gms

Salt 5 tbsp

Turmeric powder 1 tbsp

Method:-

Sun dry red chillies,cumin and coriander for two days.

Roast all the above ingredients separately.

Let it cool.Once cool grind into smooth powder.

Let it rest for a while and store in a air tight container.Don't use it directly,take small quantities and use it in curries and pachadis.

This is my first post in Summer special categories.

Sunnudalu

Sunnudalu is a traditional Andhra sweet which is made during festivals and baby showers.It is very nutritious and involves very few ingredients.I usually make this for my daughters and everyday without fail i give them one in the evening.Its been a while i made them and i was told by mom and other relatives to make them for my daughter who was hospitalized for 3 days due to high temp and she lost 4 kgs of weight,as such she is thin and now she was become very weak.The good thing is now she is having her summer break from school so i can utilize this time to give her healthy food with enough rest at home.This laddu my mom made for her and here goes her recipe

Ingredients:-

Udad dal 1 cup

Rice 3 tbsp

Jaggery 1 cup

Ghee 1/4 cup

Method:-

Dry roast udad dal until light brown colour and remove from the pan as even after switching off the stove the hot pan still fries the dal and dal turns into dark brown colour (it doesn't taste good).Immediately after switching off the flame take the udad dal on a plate and spread it to cool.

In the same pan dry roast rice until light brown colour and add that to the udad dal.

Let both completely cool.

In a mixer grind both into powder not completely soft but a little coarse.

Grind the jaggery on a paper with a mortal (i don't grind jaggery in the mixie as it tends to leave water when grinded with the dal and rice.

Add the jaggery to the dal and rice powder.Now slowly add ghee and make round balls.The amount of powder to take in your palm depends on your palm size.

Let it dry for sometime before you store in a air tight container.

Mixed Vegetable Fry

Ingredients:-

Cauliflower 10 florets

Capsicum 2 chopped into long slices

Carrot 2 chopped into thin 2" long

French beans 10 broken into 2

Panner 10 small cubes

Tomatoes 2 chopped finely

Onions 2 chopped

Green chillies 3 chopped

Ginger 1'' chopped

Garlic 2 chopped

Ginger Juliennes 10

Coriander powder 1 tbsp

Cumin powder 1 tsp

Red chilly powder 1tsp

Salt to taste

Oil 2 tbsp

Method:-

Take 1 tbsp of oil in a pan.When hot add panner and fry until panner changes it colour.Remove panner and add cauliflower,capsicum,carrot and beans in the same oil.Toss them on a high flame until they change colour and semi soft.

In a another pan,take the rest of the oil.When hot add onions and green chillies.Fry until onions change colour but not fully fried.

Add tomatoes.Cook until tomatoes are soft.Then add coriander powder,cumin powder,turmeric powder and red chilly powder.

Mix well.Now add all the fried veggies and panner.Mix gently.

Sprinkle salt and ginger juliennes.

Mix well and toss until oil appears on the side of the pan.

Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve with paratha.

Palakura Papu (Dal and Spinach)

Dal is cooked almost very day for lunch in most of the households in South India.Whether it is tomato dal,spinach(Palakura) dal,fenugreek (menthikura),mango dal etc.

This is very easy to prepare just add dal with any of the above and pressure cook it along with onions,green chillies and do the seasoning.

There is a another way to cook Palakura pappu which my mother inlaw does.She pressure cooks Toor dal and boils spinach.Later she mixes both and does the seasoning.Both the method taste different.The first method, the taste of dal dominates and second method taste of Spinach dominates and has a little different colour.

When i am hard pressed with time i do the first method or else i prefer doing the later method even though it is little lengthy.Here goes my m-law recipe for the simple comfort food...

Ingredients:-

Toor dal (kandi pappu) 1 cup

Spinach (palak kurra) 1 cup (chopped)

Tomato 1 (chopped finely)

Onions 1 chopped

Green chillies 2 slited

Turmeric powder 1/2tsp

Red chilly powder 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Seasoning

Oil 1 tbsp

Rai 1 tsp

Udad dal 1tsp

Cumin seeds 1tsp

Red chilly whole 2

Hing a pinch

Curry leaves few

Method:-

Pressure cook toor dal (kandi pappu).When cool mash it into smooth paste.

Boil Spinach for 5 mintues.Drain the water and keep aside.Don't throw the water.

Take oil in a pan,when hot add hing.Then add all the seasoning.When they are fried add tomatoes.

Cook until tomatoes are soft.Then add the dal and spinach.

Mix well and add the water which was kept aside after draining the boiled spinach

Add salt and mix well.

Serve hot with rice or chapati.