If you have an unexpected guest at home, it is very hard to make chickpea based dishes because it needs a lot of soaking time. But chole and bathura makes a nice dinner meal. I always have a bag of frozen chickpeas in my freezer so that I can whip…
COOKING BASICS
Baharat Powder
Baharat Powder is the spice powder used in Arab Cuisine. It is a mixture of some flavourful spices and it is used in soups. I used it in chick pea soup which is inspired by Lebanese cooking. Recipe Source: Tarla Dalal Makes 1/2 cup of Baharat Powder Ingredients: Black Pepper…
Kurivi Thalai Pavakkai / Mini Bitter Gourd
Kurivi thalai pavakkai can be translated into sparrow head bitter gourd as the gourd resembles the small head of a sparrow. They taste amazing in a tamarind based gravy/ puli kulambu or vadhakkal. They are less bitter and when sauteed in oil for a long time, the bitterness is still…
Apple Jam
For the final day of Blogging Marathon Week 2, I wanted to make something sweet. Jams are great to slather on bread slices. When thinking of what jam to make, I saw the sweet and cute apples sitting in my fruit basket. So I decided upon apple jam. Jam making…
Herbed Garlic Butter
For the second day of Blogging Marathon Week 2 I tried out this wonderful spiced butter as a spread for my toasts. If I have to choose between the pumpkin spread and this herbed butter, I would go for this yummy butter. With a slight hint of garlic and fresh…
Cooking Rice in Mud Pot
Rice is the staple food of south India. With out rice the meal is incomplete for us. So every south Indian household cooks rice on daily basis. Granny used to cook rice in mud pots and that rice is very good for health. Even now a doctor in Chennai asks…
Puttu Maavu / Puttu Flour
Puttu is a south Indian special snacks made out of rice flour. It is very soft and it is mainly because of the flour we use to prepare it. Raw rice is used for this flour. The rice can either be ground at home or can be ground at a…
Naval Palam/ Jamuns/ Java Plum
Naval palm / jamuns are available all over tamil nadu during summer season. Even now I can see some vendors selling it. It is a black fruit with a seed inside. This fruit has a connection with Tamil history also. Avvaiyar the famous poet was tested with this fruit by…
Tomato Puree
Pureed tomato is used in many gravies and sauces. The red Bangalore tomatoes are best for purees because they don’t have the sour taste and have a bright colour which makes the gravy look super inviting. The skin of the tomatoes are peeled after blanching. The tomatoes are then ground…
Fried Onion Paste
The fried onion paste gives a nice flavour to the gravy. It also thickens the gravy and add a nice sweet taste to it. It can be prepared and refrigerated upto 3-4days. It is very easy to prepare and can be quite handy in preparing rich creamy gravies. Chop onions…