Cabbage porial/ Dry cabbage curry/ Band Ghobi ki Subzi

        Steaming of vegetables is always better than cooking them in microwave. Research shows that steaming of cabbage maximizes the lot of health benefits of glucosinolates. The presence of glucosinolates helps in cancer prevention.

Serves up to 4 people
Preparation time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

500 grams of cabbage
1 chopped onion 
2 green chillies
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1-2 tbsp of paruppu podi 
1 tbsp of grated ginger
1 tbsp of oil
salt as required

Seasoning:

1/2 tsp of mustard
1/2 tsp of Bengal gram dhal

Paruppu podi:

1 cups of chutney dhal
1/2 cup of Bengal gram dhal
1/2 cup of urad dhal
2 red chillies
pinch of asafoetida
1 tsp of oil
salt as required

Preparation:

1.Heat oil in the pan, roast the ingredients Bengal gram dhal, urad dhal and red chillies till they turn golden brown.
2.Allow them to cool and grind them together till they are 85% done. Then add the chutney dhal, asafoetida and salt and grind them.Paruppu podi is ready.
3.Heat oil in the pan and add mustard, Bengal gram dhal. 
4.As the mustard crackles, add onion, ginger and slit green chillies. Saute for a minute.
5.Add the chopped cabbage, salt and turmeric to the pan and saute well for 5 minutes.Close the lid. Add 1/4 cup of water.
6.Stir occasionally and check if the cabbage is cooked and add the paruppu podi and cook for 5 more minutes.
7.Cabbage porial is ready. Serve with rice and sambhar.

Red Chori dhal/ kootu

  Red chori dhal are starchy beans but rich in fiber. The fiber content in red chori dhal lowers blood cholesterol while offering  cardiovascular benefits.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup red chori dhal

1/4 kg red pumpkin

1 tsp red chilli powder

1/4 tsp of turmeric powder

1 tomato

oil as required

salt as required

Grinding:

1 large chopped onion

1/2  cup of grated  coconut

1/2 tbsp cumin seeds

1 red chilly

Seasoning:

1 sprig of curry leaves

1/4 tbsp mustard seeds

1 red chilly

Preparation:

1.Soak chori dhal for 5-6 hours. Add turmeric, salt and 2 cups of water to chori dhal and pressure cook with red pumpkin.
2.In a pan, add chopped tomatoes, red chilly powder and saute for 2-3 minutes.

3.Grind grated coconut, cumin seeds, red chilly, chopped onions with little water and make it into a smooth paste.

4.Add this paste to the tomatoes in the pan and cook till the raw smell disappears. Add the cooked dhal and cook for 5 more minutes in medium flame.

5.Add the seasoning to the chori dhal. Delicious chori dhal is ready.

6.Serve with rice and papad.

Spicy karamani/ Spicy black-eyed peas curry/ Dry karamani porial

 Black-eyed peas are very good source of foliate, potassium, copper, phosphorous and manganese. They supply high quality protein which provides a healthy alternative to meat.

Serves up to 3 people
Preparation time:30 minutes


Ingredients:

1 cup of dried black-eyed beans
1 can of crushed tomatoes 
2 green chillies
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 tsp of red chilly powder
1/2 tsp of garam masala
2 tbsp of butter
1/2 tsp of fennel seeds 
1/2 tsp of dried fenugreek leaves(kasoori methi)
salt as required


Preparation:


1.Soak the black-eyed beans overnight. Pressure cook the beans with water and salt (Do not overcook the beans).
2.Add the 1 tbsp of butter to the pan, once the butter is melted add the fennel. As the nice aroma comes, add the tomatoes and green chillies (cut in to halves) and saute for 3-5 minutes.
3.Add the spices (turmeric, red chilly powder).
4.Transfer the cooked beans to the pan and check for more salt.
Close the lid and let it cook for 15 minutes (in medium flame). Add the garam masala, the remaining butter and kasoori methi. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
5.Spicy karamani is ready. Serve with rice/ roti.