Walnuts benefit in lowering bad cholesterol. My kids love this upma and I sometimes give them when they crave for noodles.
Serves up to 3 people Preparation time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
2 cups of Semia/ vermicelli 2 1/2 cups of water 2 tbsp of finely chopped carrots 2 tbsp of finely chopped potatoes 2 tbsp of peas 1 chopped onion 1 tbsp of grated ginger 3 chopped green chillies 6 cashew nuts 3 tbsp of walnuts 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder 1 tbsp of coriander leaves 1 tbsp of oil 1 tbsp of ghee salt as required
Seasoning:
1 tsp of cumin seeds 1 piece of cinnamon
Preparation:
1. In a preheated pan, add ghee and oil. Add seasoning to the oil. 2. As the cumin sputters, add walnut and cashew then saute for 2 minute. 3. Add onion, green chillies and ginger saute till the raw smell disappears. Add chilli powder and 1/2 tsp of salt to the pan. 4. Add the vegetables (carrot, potato and peas) and saute for 5 minutes. 5. Add semia/ vermicelli and saute till it turns golden brown. Heat the water separately and add to the pan. Add salt and close the lid. 6. Semia walnut upma is ready after 10 minutes. Serve with chutney/ Idly-milagai podi.
With the valentine's day around the corner, I thought I would impress my husband with his favorite food. I made this noodles Indo-Chinese style. I love paneer so I decided to use as an alternative for tofu.
Serves up to 2 people Preparation time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
1 pkt. of Hakka Noodles 1 small cup of chopped carrots 1 small cup of chopped cabbage 1 small cup of cut-paneer 1 small cup of chopped bell pepper(any color) 1 small cup of chopped beans 2 cloves of garlic 1 inch of ginger 3 green Serrano peppers 3 tbsp of scallions 1 tbsp of tomato ketchup 1 1/2 tbsp of soya sauce 1/2 tsp of freshly ground pepper 2 tbsp of olive oil
Preparation:
1.In a large saucepan add water. As the water starts boiling add Hakka noodles. Use tongs to separate the noodles while boiling. Let the noodles cook till it is 90% done. 2.Pour 1 tbsp of oil on the strainer and transfer the noodles. To the wok (use wok for better results), add oil. Then add finely chopped ginger, garlic and peppers. Saute for 2-3 minutes. 3.Add carrots, beans, bell peppers, cabbage to the wok and saute well for 5 minutes. The vegetables can be varied for different tastes and texture. 4.Fry paneer in the pan with little oil separately. Add the fried paneer to the wok. 5.Add tomato ketchup, soya sauce, pepper and add the Hakka noodles and saute well till everything is mixed. 6.Add scallions as garnish. Hakka noodles is ready.
Paneer is rich in calcium and protein. Paneer butter masala goes well with roti or even with Pulav.
Serves up to 3-4 people Preparation time:1 hour
Ingredients:
200 grams of paneer 2 large onions 2 large tomatoes 1 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste 1 tbsp of red chilli powder(~spice level) 1 tsp of coriander powder 2 tsp of garam masala 1/2 stick of butter 2 tbsp of heavy cream 1 tbsp of kasoori methi (dry fenugreek leaves) oil for frying salt as required
Preparation:
1.Add 1 tsp of oil to the preheated skillet and then add chopped onion, saute till the raw smell disappears. Allow the onions to cool and grind it in to a paste. 2.Grind the tomatoes separately. To the pan add butter and when the butter is melted add onion paste and ginger-garlic paste. Saute till nice aroma comes and add tomatoes and little salt. 3.Saute in simmer flame for 30 minutes and then add red chilli powder, coriander powder, garam masala and remaining salt. Close the lid for 15 minutes. 4.Cut paneer in to small squares. Fry paneer separately in oil till it turns golden brown. Add the fried paneer and kasoori methi to the pan and bring it to boil. 5.Add heavy cream and stir for 2 minutes. Paneer butter masala is ready. Serve with roti.
The cluster beans are flatter and smaller cousin of french beans. they provide a rich source of protein and fiber. To tone down the slight bitter taste of cluster beans I made paruppu usili.
Serves up to 4 people Preparation time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
500 grams of cluster beans 1 tsp of cumin powder 1/4 cup of Bengal gram 1 tbsp of toor dhal 1/4 tsp of turmeric 2 red chillies 1 tbsp of grated ginger 1 clove of garlic 2 tbsp of oil salt as required
For seasoning: 1 tsp of mustard 8 curry leaves 3-4 green chillies pinch of asafoetida
Preparation:
1.Soak Bengal gram and toor dhal in water for 1 hour. Grind toor dhal, Bengal gram, ginger, garlic and red chillies together in to a coarse paste. Make lemon-sized balls. 2.Cut the cluster beans into 1 inch pieces. Cook cluster beans (steam in a pan) with turmeric and 1/2 tsp of salt till it is 75% done. 3.Steam the lemon-sized balls of dhal for 10-15 minutes. Once cooked, break the balls into pieces. 4.In a preheated skillet, add 1 tbsp of oil. Add the seasoning to the pan. As the mustard sputters, add cluster beans and saute well. Add the cooked dhal to the pan. 5.Keep sauteing for 10 minutes,add another tbsp of oil, cumin powder and salt. Saute till the cluster beans is cooked.
My husband is a very big fan of bindi. He always craves for bindi subzi. I was tasting this bindi fry in one of the fine Indian cuisine and I thought I will impress him by making him this dish.
Serves up to 3 people Preparation time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
300 grams of Bindi/ Okra 1 small cup of chopped onion 1 small cup of chopped tomato 1 tbsp of chopped ginger 1 tsp of red chilli powder 1 tsp of amchur powder (dry mango powder) 1 tsp of garam masala 2 red chillies 2 tsp of yogurt 1 tsp of cumin seeds 8 curry leaves 2 tbsp of oil salt as required
Preparation:
1.Cut the okra in to 1 inch pieces. In a preheated pan add oil. 2.Add cumin seeds, broken red chillies and curry leaves. As the cumin sputters, add onion and ginger. 3.Saute for 3 minutes and add okra. Saute well for 10 minutes. Add yogurt and continue sauteing. Yogurt is the secret ingredient which helps remove the stickiness from the okra. 4.Add turmeric, red chilli powder, amchur powder and salt. Saute for another 5 minutes. 5.Add tomato and garam masala and saute till the tomato becomes mushy. Sprinkle little water and close the lid till the okra is cooked. 6.Okra fry is ready. Serve with roti /rice.
Serves up to 3 people
