CHURAKKA PULIYITTA KOOTU ( TAMARIND BASED LAUKI CURRY)

Lauki, dudhi  bottlegourd it is known as has got lot of health benefits.  A glass of juice in the empty stomach helps for weight reduction, keeps the cholesterol level under control,  treats in urinary tract infection, reduces inflammation in liver, replenishes water loss as it contains lots of water, keeps heart healthy, treat sleep disorders, helps in digestion, keeps cool the stomach, etc. etc.

As lauki contains almost 96% of water, it is perfect for juice extraction. It is readily available in the market and is affordable too! Moreover, extracting the juice from lauki is not at all difficult. Lauki juice is rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin B, sodium, iron and potassium. It has low fat and cholesterol level. As a result, this anti-oxidant drink is quite popular among health conscious individuals.

Now coming back to the recipe, the puliyitta kootu means, the lauki is cooked in tamarind sauce along with black boiled chana and chana dal.  we can also use tuvar dal instead of chana dal or only can be done with tuvar dal.  Since tamarind does not suits us, I have replaced the same with amchur powder.  This delicious dish goes well with rice, roti etc.  consistency of the gravy can be decided according to your requirement.

churakka puliyitta kootu you tube

IDLI CHOLEY CHAAT

Chaat recipes are Mumbai's street food and is loved by all.  the Pani puri, dahi puri, ragada pattice etc. etc. the list goes on.  

What about making one at home with left over items.  Seems interesting right.  Yes, it is interesting and yummy too. 

I had some idlis and left over choley in my fridge.  If I serve the same items second time, no one is going to eat it.  Hence I decided to make it a twist and made them to eat which was a hit and was asked for the second serve but unfortunately could not as both the items got over.

Yes, I am talking about idli choley chaat which was a hit in my home and demanded to make it again next day.  The fried idli mixed with choley, onion and tomatoes with the chutneys vow! experience yourself.

idli choley chaat

GINGER CHUTNEY, INJI THOGAYAL

Today I am sharing a chutney or thogayal it is called out of ginger.  It can be served with steamed rice, ghee or gingelly oil or with dal rice, molagootal rice, curd rice or with dosa too.

Ginger helps in curing various diseases.  One among them is indigestion.  Ginger is a herb. The rhizome (underground stem) is used as a spice and also as a medicine. It can be used fresh, dried and powdered, or as a juice or oil.  powdered form is called sunth powder or chukku podi.

Ginger is commonly used to treat various types of stomach ailments,  including motion sickness, morning sickness, colic,  gas, diarrhea, nausea caused by cancer treatment, nausea and vomiting after surgery, as well as loss of appetite.

Other uses include pain relief from arthritis or muscle soreness, menstrual pain, upper respiratory tract infections, cough, and bronchitis. Ginger is also sometimes used for chest pain, low back pain, and stomach pain.

In foods and beverages, ginger is used as a flavoring agent.

In manufacturing, ginger is used as for fragrance in soaps and cosmetics.

It is also used to make various ayurvedic medicines.  In diwali lehyam, ginger is a main ingredient.

ginger chutney, inji thogayal

ORANGE BURFI, SANTRA BURFI

The season of  orange has started and all seasonal fruits are liked by my children and they do not miss them.  Nagpur orange is famous in Maharashtra as well as the Nagpur Orange Burfi.  

I tasted it when one of my friend came from Nagpur and brought this for us.  I was  quite happy to get the box of burfis and without even offering  anyone, started eating it. 

Ever since I tasted that burfi, it was in my mind to try but could not do so for no reason.  This year my husband brought the big fully ripe oranges, I thought, I am not going to miss the chance of making the burfi this time.

I made the burfi in two ways one with mawa and one with maida.  But the most liked one was with mawa hence I am posting the same first and shall post the recipe with maida in due course.

Now the season has started, I preferred  to try the same with the fresh oranges only and not with ready made juice or emulsion.  The result was yummy.

RICE STUFFED CAPSICUM

rice stuffed capsicum is similar to the rice spinach skillet but without the spinach.  This dish is also can be prepared with left over rice.  The capsicum stuffed with rice and egg with spices and topped with cheese yummy when it is served hot.

I made this dish when I prepared the rice spinach skillet and the video was shot  but could not show the end product due to the time it consumed to bake.

RICE SPINACH SKILLET

Rice spinach skillet I made is with the left over rice.  Since we were bored of eating the regular lime rice, curd rice, coconut rice etc. etc. the list is endless of rice varieties, I told my daughter to do something with it.

It was her idea of making the rice spinach skillet dish.  Since she wanted to put on some weight, now a days,  opting for such foods which will increase her weight.  she is very fond of egg and cheese and decided to make something out of it.  This is not only tasty but healthy too.

The onion, spinach, egg and the cheese which is very tempting to try your hand on this dish.

 watch you tube:   rice spinach skillet

ONION UTTAPPAM

Onion uttappam is a tasty breakfast with spicy sambar or chutney.  But my children prefer to eat the same with tomato sauce.  Sauce is part of their dish for almost everything.  The onion, green chilli, dosa milagai podi and the coriander leaves makes this uttappam delicious and DIL MANGE MORE.

You can make this with the left over idli/dosa batter too.   Normally, everyone use the big onions.  If it is made with the Madras onion, the taste is far better than the normal onion which we use.  My father use to make the onion uttappam with shallots ie. madras onion or chinna vengayam or kunjulli.

 Actually this is pending since last year and I totally forgotten about it.  I was checking the recipes in my computer as I wanted to delete the unwanted ones, I came across this and decided to post it today.  There are many recipes pending like this. shall post one by one.

Let us look at the recipe now:

INSTANT FLAXSEED DOSA

I have already posted pumpkin  flaxseed gun powder, flaxseed idli, flaxseed khajur ladoo. The flaxseed powder is substituted for egg in preparation of cake. 

Here I have come up with instant flaxseed dosa which is very easy to make with no hassles provided you have rice flour at home.  The wheat flour will always be there so no tension.  It is a no urid dal recipe so those who are allergic to urid dal can enjoy this dish along with sambar, chutney or milagai podi.

It is very easy, tasty and healthy breakfast.

CAPSICUM CARROT PULAO

carrot capsium pulao is very easy to make and delicious with any kind of raita and papad.  rice varieties are many, you can twist and turn to make anything with the rice.  even the left over rice can be used.

You get Vitamin A and a host of other powerful health benefits including beautiful skin, cancer prevention, and anti-aging.  It is used in salads or as it is eaten  by everyone.  I remember, when we went to Mahabaleshwar, fresh carrots were available and we just could not resist ourselves.  We bought and ate just like that it was yummy.  who will not like the fresh vegetables?

coming back to the pulao, it is very easy to make.

FLAXSEED IDLI

Idli is normally made in every house hold specially South Indian.  But now a days, every one  and every part of the world, this has become famous.  There are various kinds of idlis we can make one among them is flaxseed idli. Link to the varieties of idlis:   chinese idli, kanjeevarm idli, curry patta idli,    jowar idli,      curry patta idli fry.   Idli fry


 Two flaxseed variety:  flaxseed gun powder,  flaxsed khajur ladoo

  Since the idlis are steam cooked, it is quite good for health.