Jeera rice and Malai Kofta

JEERA RICE

Ingredients:
Basmathi Rice  -1 cup
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp
Onion - 1 chopped lengthwise
Green peas - a handful (optional)
Cinnamon - a small stick
Cloves - 2-3
Bay leaves - 1
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Salt - as per taste

Method:
Wash and soak rice for half an hour. Heat ghee in a pressure pan. Add cinnamon, cloves, Bay leaves, ginger garlic paste and onions. Fry for few minutes. Mix rice and salt. Add required water. Close the lid and pressure cook for 2-3 whistles. Serve hot.

MALAI KOFTA

Ingredients:

For Kofta:

Potatoes - 2

Paneer - 100 gms(optional)

Red Chilli powder - as per taste

Cornflour - 1 tbsp

Salt - as per taste

Mix the above and prepare balls. Deep fry and keep it aside.

For gravy:

Onion - 3

Tomatoes - 2

Cinnamon - a small piece

Cloves - 2

Green peas - 1/2 cup

Cashewnuts - a few

Ginger - a small piece

Garlic- 5 pods

Red Chilli powder  -as per taste

Salt - as per taste

Corriander powder - 1 tbsp

Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp

Fresh cream - 2 tbsp or milk

Corriander leaves - to garnish

Oil

Method:

Heat oil in a pan. Add onion and tomatoes. Few for few minutes until the onions turns brown and tomatoes are well mashed. Cool and grind along with ginger, garlic, cinnamon, cloves and cashews. Heat oil in a pan. Add the grounded mixture and green peas. Add red chilli powder, salt, garam masala and corriander powder. Add required water and boil for 15 min in medium heat. Add fresh cream and cook for few more minutes. Place the prepared Koftas in a bowl. Pour in the gravy. Top it with fresh corriander leaves and cream.Serve with rotis or rice.

Pudina Capsicum Rice

Ingredients:
Basmati Rice - 1 cup
Pudina - 1/2 cup
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Onion - 2 chopped
Tomato - 1 chopped
Capsicum - 1 chopped
Green peas - 1 handful (optional)
Red chilli powder - as per taste
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Salt - as per taste
Oil / Ghee

Method:
Wash and soak the rice for half an hour.  Grind the pudina into a fine paste. Heat oil / ghee in a pressure pan. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, ginger garlic paste and onions. Fry till the onions become brown. Add capsicum and peas. Fry for few minutes. Then add the chopped tomato and mix well. Add red chilli powder, garam masala and required salt. Add the pudina paste. Fry for few more minutes. Add the soaked rice and 2 cups of water. Pressure cook for 2 whistles. Serve hot with raitha.

Tomato Rice II

The ingredients of this version of tomato rice is similar to the previous one but with a little change. The taste also differs. Here is my another version of tomato rice....

Ingredients:
Tomatoes - 6-7 (pureed)
Onion - 3 (chopped lengthwise)
Green peas - a handful
Ginger - garlic paste - 1/2 tsp
Cinnamon - a small stick
Bay leaves - 1
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves -  a few
Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
Red Chilli powder - as per taste
Salt - as per taste
Basmathi rice - 1 cup
Water - 2 cups
Oil / Ghee

Method:
Wash the basmathi rice and soak for half an hour. Heat oil / ghee in a pressure pan. Add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Add chopped onions, green peas, ginger garlic paste, cinnamon and bay leaves. Fry for few minutes till the onions become soft. Add the pureed tomatoes. Mix well. Now add red chilli powder, garam masala and salt. Fry for few minutes till the oil seperates. Add the soaked basmathi rice and required water. Check for the salt and spices. Close the lid and allow 1 - 2 whistles depending upon the pressure pan. Serve hot with raitha. Yummy tomato rice is ready.  

Kothamalli Biriyani (Corriander Leaves Biriyani)

Ingredients:
Basmathi Rice - 1 cup
Coconut milk - 1 cup
Oil / Ghee - 2 tsp

Grind :
Jeera - 1 tsp
Green Chillies - 4
Ginger and Garlic - finely chopped - 1tbsp
Corriander powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Cardamom - 2
Cloves - 2
Cinnamon - 1 stick
Corrinader leaves - 1/2 bunch
Pudina leaves - a few
Small onion - 14-15
Salt to taste

Method:
Soak rice for 1/2 hr. Grind together all the above ingredients with little water. Heat oil/ghee in a pressure pan. Add the grounded paste. Fry till the raw smell goes. Add salt and coconut milk. Boil for sometime. Add the soaked rice. Mix well. Add required amount of water. Pressure cook for 3 whistles. Serve hot with raitha..

Aadi 18 Perukku

Aadi 18 Perukku, as the name indicates, is a festival observed on 18th day in Tamil month Aadi. It is also known as Pathinettam Perukku. This year, the festival falls on August 3rd ie today. On this auspicious day, we prepare variety rice and offer to God. Here are the items which I prepared today...which is very easy to prepare and ofcourse tasty...

Now goes the recipe for each item:

Lemon rice :

Ingredients:

Cooked Rice - 1 cup

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dal - 1/2 tsp

Channa dal - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves - a few

Red chilli - 1

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Hing - a pinch

Salt to taste

Lemon juice - 1 tbsp or as required

Oil

Method:

Spread the cooked rice in a plate. Add little Gingelly oil so that the rice does not stick to each other. Heat oil in a Kadai. Add mustard seeds, channa dal, urad dal, curry leaves, hing and red chilli. Fry well. Add turmeric powder and salt. Mix well. Transfer the mixture immediately to the rice. Mix well. Lastly add lemon juice and mix again. 

Coconut rice:

Ingredients:

Cooked Rice - 1 cup

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dal - 1/2 tsp

Channa dal - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves - a few

Red chilli - 1

Coconut - a handful

Hing - a pinch

Salt to taste

Oil

Method:

Spread the cooked rice in a plate. Add little Gingelly oil so that the rice does not stick to each other. Heat oil in a Kadai. Add mustard seeds, channa dal, urad dal, curry leaves, hing and red chilli. Fry well. Add the coconut and fry till it becomes brown in colour. Add required salt and mix it with rice. 

Tamarind rice / Puliodarai:

Ingredients:

Puliodarai paste [I havnt tried preparing the Gojju so got readymade :-)]

Cooked Rice - 1 cup

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Urad dal - 1/2 tsp

Channa dal - 1/2 tsp

Curry leaves - a few

Red chilli - 1 (if needed)

Hing - a pinch

Salt to taste

Oil

Method:

Spread the cooked rice in a plate. Add little Gingelly oil so that the rice does not stick to each other. Heat oil in a Kadai. Add mustard seeds, channa dal, urad dal, curry leaves, hing and red chilli. Fry well. Add the Puliodarai paste to the seasonings. Mix well. Add salt if required. Add the rice to the above mixture and mix. 

Sweet pongal / Sarkarai Pongal:

For the recipe, click here.

Avial:

For the recipe, click here

Curd rice:

Ingredients:

Cooked rice - 1 cup

Thick curds - 1/2 cup

Milk - 1/4 cup

Ginger - 1 small piece - chopped finely

Green chilli - 1 - chopped finely

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Urad dal - 1/4 tsp

Cashews - a few(optional)

Salt - to taste

For garnishing:

Carrots - scrapped

Corriander leaves - a few

Method:

Heat oil in a kadai. Add mustard seeds, urad dal, ginger, green chilli and cashews. Fry well and keep it aside. Mix the rice properly with your hands. Add the curds and milk. Mix well. Add required salt. Add the prepared seasoning to the rice and mix well. Serve chilled topped with carrots and corriander leaves. Yummy!!! I love curd rice...Slurp....

Today's Special - Hubby's Special - Vegetable Biriyani

Today is a weekend for us in Saudi and I dint have the mood to prepare lunch...So today my hubby took the task of preparing lunch. After a few minutes discussion, he decided to prepare Vegetable Biriyani. This is his version of this dish. Believe me, the preparation was so simple and the taste was awesome....Try it out..

Ingredients: [You can change the measurement according to your taste]

Fry the following ingredients and grind it into a fine paste :

Onion - 2 (roughly chopped)

Tomatoes - 2(roughly chopped)

Ginger - 1 small piece

Garlic - 4-5 pods

Cinnamon - a small piece

Bay leaves - 1

Saunf - 1/2 tsp

Coconut - 1/2 cup

Pudina leaves - a few

Green chillies - 2

Other ingredients:

Onion - 1(finely chopped)

Tomatoes - 1(finely chopped)

Mixed vegetables - 1 cup (beans, carrot, peas etc)

Red chilli powder - as per your taste

Biriyani masala - 1/2 tsp (optional)

Garlic - 3 pods (chopped)

Bread pieces - a few

Basmathi rice - 2 cups

Salt to taste

Ghee / Oil

Method:

Heat ghee/oil in a pressure pan. Add onions, tomatoes, garlic and fry well. Add the grounded paste and fry for few minutes. Add the mixed vegetables, red chilli powder, masala powder, rice and salt. Mix well. Add required amount of water and pressure cook for 3 whistles. Meanwhile, heat ghee or oil in a kadai. Fry the bread pieces and keep it aside.

After the rice is done, add the bread piece and mix well. Serve hot with raitha / vadam.

Ven Pongal

Ingredients:

Rice - 2 cups

Moong dal - 3/4 cup

Turmeric powder - a pinch

Salt - to taste

Ginger - 1 inch piece (chopped)

Green chilli - 1

Black pepper - 1 tbsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tbsp

Curry leaves - a few

Cashewnuts - a few

Ghee - as required

Method:

Heat ghee in a pressure pan. Add cumin seeds, curry leaves, black pepper, green chillies and ginger. Fry well. Grind some black pepper and cumin seeds together and keep aside. Wash rice and dal together. Add to the above. Mix well. Add required salt and water. Mix well. Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. Heat ghee in another pan. Add the grounded mixture. Fry well and add to the pongal. Lastly add fried cashews in ghee. Add more ghee if required before serving. Serve hot with chutney or sambar.

Note: You can add ginger , pepper etc at the last also instead of adding together along with rice.

Bisi Bele Bath (Hot Lentil Rice)

Bisi Bele Bath is one of the famous main dish of South especially in Karnataka. It is usually prepared using rice and dal along with vegetables and a special masala powder. The powder will be available in most of the Indian stores. There are many ways to prepare this special dish and this is one of the ways I follow.
Ingredients:

Rice - 1 cup

Toor dal - 1/4 cup

Mixed vegetables - 1 cup (chopped lenghtwise)

Small onions - a few

Groundnuts - a few

Bisi bele bath powder - 2 tbsp

Salt to taste

Gingelly oil / Ghee

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp

Curry leaves - a few

Cashews for garnish

Method:

Wash rice and toor dal together. Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves and groundnuts. Fry for few minutes. Add small onions and the vegetables. Mix well. Add masala powder and salt. Fry for another 5 minutes. Lastly add the rice and dal and mix well. Add required amount of water. Pressure cook for 3 whistles. Garnish with cashews fried in ghee. Serve hot with raitha or boondi.

Dry Peas Pulav

Ingredients:

Dry peas - a handful

Basmathi rice - 1 cup

Coconut - 2 tbsp

Green chillies - 2-3

Cinnamon, cardamom, bay leaves - each 1 small piece

Garlic - 2-3 pods

Ginger - a small piece

Onion - 2

Cashewnuts -  a few

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Oil / Ghee

Salt - to taste

Method:

Soak the dry peas overnight. Grind together coconut, green chillies, cinnamon, cardamom, garlic, ginger and 1 tbsp chopped onions into a fine paste. Heat oil / ghee in a pressure cooker. Add cumin seeds, bay leaves and chopped onions. Fry for few minutes.

Add the soaked peas and the grounded paste. Fry for another 5 min. Wash the basmathi rice well and add to the above. Mix well. Add required salt and water. I added 1:1 1/2 ratio. Allow 2 whistles. Fry cashews in ghee and add to the rice. Serve hot with raitha.

Tomato Rice!!!

Among all South Indian dishes, Tomato rice makes a perfect one meal dish. There are number of ways in which Tomato rice can be prepared. And this is one of my methods which is very easy and tasty too. Here goes my recipe.

Ingredients:

Tomato - 3 (chopped)

Onion - 2 (chopped lengthwise)

Green peas - 1/2 cup

Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1tsp

Green chilli - 1 slitted

Rice  -1 cup

Salt to taste

Oil - as requirement

Method:

In a cooker / pressure pan, heat some oil. Add onion, ginger garlic paste and salt. Saute for few min till onion turns pink. Add the peas and fry for another 5 min. Add tomatoes and red chilli powder. Fry well till the oil seperates. Add washed rice. Mix well. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the rice. Check for salt and spice. Mix well and close the lid. Pressure cook it for 3 whisles. Here you go! Tomato rice is ready within minutes. Serve hot with Papad or raitha.

Simple Vegetable Pulav

Ingredients:

Basmathi rice - 2 cups

Vegetables (carrot, beans, cauliflower, capsicum, peas...) - chopped into 1 inch length

Salt - as per taste

ginger - garlic paste - 1 tsp

Green chillies - 2-3

Cardamom - 2-3

Cinnamon - 1 small piece

Cloves - 1-2

Bay leaves - a few

Pulav masala - 1 tsp (optional)

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Oil / Ghee

Method:

I prepared this dish in pressure cooker. You can prepare it either in open pan or in a rice cooker. For me this method is quite easy and the result is tasty. Try this.

In a pressure cooker/ pan, add oil / ghee, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, cumin seeds, green chillies and ginger garlic paste. Fry for 2 min. Add the chopped vegetables, pulav masala and salt. Fry for another 2-3 min. Wash the rice properly and add to this. Fry for sometime. Frying the rice along with the vegetables give a good flavour. Now its the time to add water. Add 1 1/2 cup of water for each cup of rice ie. the ratio for rice and water should be 1:1 1/2. Depending upon the quantity of rice, you can add required water. Check the taste. If everything is ok, close it with a lid, slightly open. Once the water is reduced and the rice is 3/4 boiled, close the lid and put the weight. Keep the gas in low flame. Switch off after 10 min. Garnish with spring onions if required.

Can be taken along with any spicy side dish or raitha.