Traditional Indian cuisine Archives

Moong daal ki khichdi

Moong daal ki khichdi is a very simple meal and you can call it ‘one pot meal’ also. Usually, moong daal ki khichdi is cooked in the house if someone is having upset stomach or wants to have light meal.

In our house, khichdi is prepared if we will have lunch at a restaurant or have attended some marriage or similar kind of function. Then dinner will always be khichdi to keep stomach light or balanced.

But actually it is not the same in all communities. Bengalis prepare khichdi during special occasions also.

Khichdi basically is a mix of rice and lentil. Lentil can be of different kind as per different communities. In UP, green split moong daal lentil is used. In MP, people use urad daal for khichdi. In Rajasthan, bajra (pearl millet) khichdi is also prepared during winter season and is very tasty. In Gujarat, toor daal khichdi is also prepared. In Andhra Pradesh, masoor daal is used for khichdi.

Nowadays there are restaurants that serve only different varieties of khichdi. This shows the popularity of this simple meal. Or probably, those bachelors who can’t cook, and are completely depending on restaurants for their food, find these khichdi restaurants very useful for them.

Khichdi is very easy to cook. Ratio of daal and chawal is also not something which is fixed. Rice and lentil can be taken 50:50 or 60:40 or 70 :30, depending on how one likes. Spices also depend on how simple or spicy khichdi one wants to cook. One can completely omit adding any types of chilies. You can add a few vegetables like beans, potatoes, carrots, onions, bell peppers to add more nutrients and colours in khichdi.

Tadka can be added in khichdi in the beginning or in the end, when khichdi is boiled. Adding tadka later gives more flavour.

Khichdi is usually cooked with little loose consistency (or a bit diluted), but to attract kids you can cook it with thick consistency (similar to boiled rice), along with vegetables. It will give kids an illusion of vegetable pulav and probably they wouldn’t say no to khichdi.

Come, let’s cook this simple meal in a very easy manner.

Ingredients:

Split green moong daal 1/2 cup

Rice 1/2 cup

Asafotida 1/8 tsp

Salt, as per taste

Red chili powder 1/2 tsp (optional)

Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp

Dry red chilis 2 small pieces (optional)

Cumin seeds 1/2 tsp

Rai seeds 1/4 tsp

Curry patta 5-6

Oil 3 tbsp

Water as required

Process:

Take rice and moong daal in a big pan and wash them nicely, at least two times.

After washing, soak mong daal and rice for an hour.

Take pressure cooker and add mix of moong daal and rice along with the water. Switch on flame to medium heat. Water quantity should be four times more than mix of moong daal and rice. Add salt, turmeric powder and red chili powder. Mix it well and put the cover on cooker.

Let it cook for three whistles and open the cooker only when all steam settles down.

Now take a small frying pan. Heat oil on medium flame and crackle rai, cumin seeds, asafotida, curry leaves and dry chilies. Instantly add this tadka to khichdi.

Serve hot khichdi with a few spoons of desi ghee, pickle or curd along with roasted papad.

July 22, 2022

Deeksha Pathak28 Comments

Sama ke chawal ki kheer

Sama ke chawal ki kheer is usually prepared during fasting days in North India. I remember my mother used to prepare Sama ke chawal ki kheer during Navratri and Sawan ke Somvar fasting days. As I have always had a sweet tooth, I loved this quickly prepared kheer. Even my husband Manish loves this kheer. His grandmother used to prepare this at the occasion of Janmashtmi festival.

The funny part is that since my childhood till a few years back, I always thought that Sama ke chawal is a specific variety of rice itself. But now we all know it is actually part of millets family called as barnyard millet. It is very healthy, gluten free ingredient loaded with fiber and iron, if you want to include it in your diet.

Years back these specific Sama ke chawal were usually available in the grocery stores only before fasting days. Now as different types of millets are trending, these barnyard millets are available all year round in our regular grocery shops and online stores also.

The best part about this millet is that it is cooked very quickly. So no worries about spending a lot of time in the kitchen trying out new dishes.

In different states of India Sama ke chawal is know with different names as Samak chawal, Samo rice, Samai rice, Jungle rice, Shyam/Shyama rice, Jhangora, Bhagar etc… Now we get flour also from this millet, so there are many possibilities to try all different interesting gluten free dishes for your fasting days.

There are a few more recipes for different types of kheer in the blog. If interested, you can go through them also…

Gaajar(carrot) ki kheer

Dry fruits kheer

Kheer with white rice (chaawal ki kheer)

Ingredients:

Sama ke chawal 1/4 cup

Milk (fat free) 1/2 litre

Sugar 1/3 cup

Cardamom powder, mixed nuts, grated coconut.

Process:

Wash and soak sama ke chawal in water for 15 minutes.

In a pan keep milk for boiling. When milk starts boiling, reduce the heat and drain the water from sama ke chawal and add them into the milk.

Now increase the heat and keep stirring using the spatula till milk and sama ke chawal both start boiling together. Reduce the heat to sim but keep stirring to avoid milk and sama ke chawal sticking at the bottom of the pan. Within 15-20 minutes, sama ke chawal will bloom nicely and will look all mixed up with milk.

Add sugar and keep stirring on sim heat till sugar completely melts down. With the addition of sugar, kheer consistency will be little thinner. Switch off heat. Let the kheer cool down.

Once kheer cools down completely, it might turn thick. If you like thin consistency, add little bit of milk and mix it well.

Transfer Sama ke chawal ki kheer into serving bowl and garnish with mixed nuts, coconut and cardamom powder.

April 7, 2022

Deeksha Pathak28 Comments

Ilaichi aur Kesar Roll

Ilaichi aur kesar roll (cardamom and saffron roll) is prepared with khoya/mawa. If you remember, I had recently posted the process of preparing instant khoya (Milk powder-based Mawa (Khoya)). I used the same mawa to prepare these irresistible, pretty ilaichi aur kesar roll.

The best part about this sweet dish is that it is a no-cook sweet dish. Isn’t that wonderful!!

The other good part about this recipe is that you can change the flavours according to your own choice. If you like pista more than kesar (saffron) or your preference is rose flavour instead of cardamom, then go for it! This recipe is very flexible – go according to your taste buds.

One more reason to like this recipe is that if you are more of a burfi loving person instead of rolls, then just cut khoya in square shapes instead of rolling it. Double flavoured burfi is ready. Anything for you!!

And the last reason for loving this recipe is very simple – the end result is so beautiful and tastes extremely delicious!! Am I exaggerating a lot? Probably, but all of my family and friends loved these Ilaichi and kesar rolls. So, I insist you try this sweet dish at home as khoya preparation is also very easy and you can prepare mawa one or two days in advance ( Milk powder based Mawa (Khoya))

There are a few more posts in the blog related to Indian sweets, you can take a look at them also: Indian Traditional Sweets

Ingredients:

400 gm khoya
80 gms powder sugar (divide it equally in two parts)
Saffron, a few strands
Milk 1 tsp
Saffron food colour
Cardamom powder 1 tsp

A few points to remember :

Khoya should be really stiff. The rolls will not set properly if they have moisture.
Mash khoya nicely till it is smooth before adding powdered sugar. After adding sugar, khoya will be slightly sticky and it will be difficult to mash khoya to smoothen it out.
When we add powdered sugar in khoya, it becomes slightly soft. Then, when we add saffron milk on top of it, it turns even softer. So, reduce a little bit of sugar quantity in kesar khoya part. Don’t worry, it will not affect the final taste.
It doesn’t matter if you don’t have food colour, as it doesn’t affect the taste. Saffron is enough to give a wonderful flavor.
You have to keep the roll in the fridge to make it firm. If we will be heating khoya and sugar to make it firm, then keeping it in the fridge will not be necessary. But as this is a no-cook recipe, keeping the rolls in the fridge itself will do the job. Firm khoya will be easy to roll initially and later on to get neatly sliced ilaichi aur kesar rolls.

Process:

Soak kesar in hot milk and keep it aside.

Crumble khoya on the clean kitchen counter or in a broad vessel. Rub khoya nicely with your palms till it is smooth and divide it into two equal parts.

Take one part of khoya and again crumble it and add 40 gms sieved powdered sugar(can reduce sugar quantity a little) . By now, kesar milk would be ready and cooled down. Sieve milk also and add in khoya. Don’t throw away kesar strands – keep them in the fridge. We will use them later to garnish rolls.

If you want more saffron colour, add a pinch of kesar food colour. Mix everything nicely and keep this kesar khoya portion separate.

In the same way, prepare another portion of khoya by adding ilaichi powder (cardamom powder) and sieved powdered sugar.

Take butter paper or parchment paper and prepare two separate rolls of khoya. It will be easy to shape khoya in rolls with butter paper/parchment paper . Wrap up both the rolls separately in parchment paper and keep them in the fridge for two hours.

After two hours take out both the rolls from the fridge and spread these rolls on butter paper/parchment paper in a rectangle shape with the help of a rolling pin. If you will fold the parchment paper in a rectangular shape (like a book fold) and then spread khoya with a rolling pin, it will be very easy to get the same sized rectangle shape for both the rolls.

Now open the top portion of parchment paper of both ilaichi and kesar khoya and very carefully flip kesar khoya portion over the ilaichi portion.

Roll it with a rolling pin so that both stick well together.

Remove the parchment paper from the top and with the help of the bottom parchment paper, start rolling it in the shape of a log/roll.

Make a tight log/roll, wrap it in parchment paper/butter paper, and keep it in the fridge for 2-3 hours so that it becomes firm.

When the roll/log is firm, take it out from the fridge, unwrap it, and with a sharp knife slice it into small rolls.

Aren’t they beautiful!! While slicing them, the wonderful flavor of kesar and ilaichi will make you gulp one immediately. No one is looking 😉, and don’t worry if you find your family standing right behind you. You deserve that first roll after all the preparation process you did all by yourself!!!

If you can save some pieces, garnish ilaichi aur kesar roll with kesar strands.

January 18, 2021October 27, 2021

Deeksha Pathak86 Comments

Kunduru ki sabzi

Kunduru ki sabzi is my favourite as a side dish with daal-chawal, though it is equally good with chapati and plain paratha too. Kunduru is known by many different names, like, ivy gourd, coccinia grandis, tendli, scarlet gourd, tindora etc. I really like this vegetable when kunduru is completely raw and green from inside. When kunduru ripens, they turn red from inside and look fruit rather than vegetable! Though we can still cook ripened kunduru as a vegetable, but that recipe some other time.

Kunduru ki sabzi can be cooked with or without onions. Onions enhance the taste, look and make it more appealing. But that doesn’t mean that kunduru doesn’t taste good without onion – my mother is a non-onion-non-garlic person and she cooks finger-licking good food!!

There are a few more posts on different vegetables in the blog – if you are interested, can take a look…

Vegetables (Curries)

Ingredients:

Kunduru 1/2 kg
Onions 2 big sized
Green chillies chopped 3-4
Oil 5 – 6 tbsp
Water 2-3 tbsp (if required)
Coriander powder 1 tbsp
Red chilli powder 1 tsp (increase or decrease)
Turmeric powder 1 tsp
Salt as per your taste

Process:

Wash and chop kunduru lengthwise in thin stripes and keep them aside.

Chop onions and shallow fry them in one tbsp oil till they are slightly more than translucent.

Transfer these onions to a bowl. Add remaining oil and crackle cumin seeds (jeera) and asafotida (hing) in the same wok. Add chopped kunduru, spices and cut green chilies. Mix everything well and cover the wok. Keep the heat on sim.

Stir them twice or thrice. Add 2 or 3 tbsp of water if spices are sticking to the bottom of the wok. Cover again and let them cook till they are soft. Add fried onions, mix them with kunduru and let them cook on sim heat for 2-3 minutes more.

Kunduru ki sabzi is ready! Serve it hot as a side dish with daal-chawal or plain parathe/roti.

January 9, 2021January 9, 2021

Deeksha Pathak49 Comments

Kaashifal ki sabzi (pumpkin veggie)

Kaashifal ki sabzi (pumpkin veggie) always reminds me about my father. He always used to prefer kaashifal ki sabzi or pumpkin veggie for dinner, so that all family members can sit together and enjoy it with hot poori, curd and pickle. This used to be my favorite dinner also!

Pumpkin is basically sweet in taste. So chirpy green chillies, tiny pieces of raw mangoes or lemon juice gives this sabzi a perfect mixed taste of sweet, chirpy and slight tangy flavours.

Unlike other North Indian sabzis, kaashifal is not seasoned with our regular ria, hing and jeera. It is seasoned with dana methi (fenugreek). So the moment fenugreek seeds are added in hot oil, the fragrance spreads in the whole house and everyone knows that kaashifal ki sabzi is coming at the dinning table!!

For preparing Kaashifal ki Sabzi I always prefer to buy pumpkin which has green skin. Green ones are very soft and we don’t have to remove the peel while chopping pumpkin. This variety of pumpkin has lots of water in it, that’s why it gets cooked very fast. Nowadays, we are ordering online vegetables, so we get all varieties of mix pumpkin pieces. Other varieties of pumpkin are a little dry so while cooking add little water.

One more thing, while preparing pumpkin vegetable, add slightly more oil than usual. Trust me, you will feel like having chatpata pickle! Probably, I like pumpkin a lot, so either it is kaashifal ki sabzi or Kaashifal ka raita (pumpkin raita) I can just brag on and on…

Try this sabzi once, who knows this might be a new regular entry in your menu!!

Ingrediants:

Chopped pumpkin 1/2 kg
Oil 5 tbsp
Fenugreek seeds 3/4 tsp
Coriander powder 1 tbsp
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder 1 tsp
Chopped green chillies 3
Salt as per taste
Raw mango pieces(grated or chopped) /dry mango powder (amchur) /lemon juice
Water 1/8 cup (if pumpkin is dry)

Process:

Wash and chop pumpkin in small pieces along with skin (chilka).

Heat oil in a wok and splatter fenugreek seeds followed by chopped pumpkin pieces and green chillies.

Add salt, coriander powder, red chili powder, turmeric powder and salt.

Mix everything and cover it. Let it cook on sim flame till pumpkin becomes soft. In between 2-3 times keep on turning pumpkin upside down for even cooking. When 90% pumpkin is cooked add tiny chopped pieces of raw mangoe or 1 tsp dry mango powder or 1/2 tbsp lemon juice.

Mix it well, cover it again and in 2-3 minuets Kaashifal ki sabzi will be ready! Serve hot with poori or parathas.

August 9, 2020August 10, 2020

Deeksha Pathak70 Comments

Spicy lachhedar Podina Paratha

Paratha (Indian flat bread roasted with oil) is my all time favorite in all three meals of the day. And if it is spicy lachhedar podina paratha (Layered flatbread with fresh mint leaves) with a mix of wheat flour and gram flour, I can have it daily in breakfast with Kairie ki loungi (raw mango dish) or Raw Mango Chutney with Jaggery. Even though now I have significantly controlled my food cravings and breakfast is always very healthy, I will come jumping with joy if you are inviting me over breakfast to have spicy lachhedar podina paratha!!

Usually plain paratha or stuffed paratha is prepared with wheat flour. But lachhedar paratha is prepared with maida (white flour) as maida is very elastic making it easier to create multiple layers. But I hardly use maida for my daily meals. It is always wheat flour rotis for lunch and dinner. So I decided to prepare lachhedar paratha also with wheat flour. Along with wheat flour I added gram flour too. Gram flour turned paratha crisp and it enhanced the taste.

There are a few more recipes on different parathas in the blog. You can take a look:

Aaloo ka Paratha (wheat flour flat bread with spicy potato stuffing)

Mooli ka paratha (wheat flour flat bread stuffed with spicy radish)

Methi ke parathe

Ingredients :

80 gm gram flour (besan)
80 gm wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp red chilli powder
1/8 tsp asafoetida (hing)
Fresh mint leaves chopped 1 /4 cup(optional)
1 tsp cumin/carom seeds
3/4 cup Water ( reduce or add if required)
Dry wheat flour for dusting
Oil for roasting paratha

Process :

Take wheat flour, gram flour, salt, carom/cumin seeds, red chilli powder and chopped mint leaves in a broad vessel and prepare soft dough with the help of water .

Take a small portion of dough (50-60 gm) and smear it in dry flour and roll that between your palms in round shape. With the help of rolling pin, roll it evenly from all sides. If required, use dry flour while rolling.

Brush it up with oil.

Spread wheat flour all over it.

Carefully fold it into pleats, press them gently and again spread some dry flour around and roll it.

If you are using white flour, then at this point, we will stretch it vertically, but as wheat flour doesn’t have that elasticity we will straight away roll it in a round shape.

Again apply some dry flour and roll evenly with the help of the rolling pin to get a round shape.

Heat griddle (tava in Hindi) and place the paratha on it. Flip to the other side when tiny bubbles start appearing from one side. Follow the same for other side too.

When paratha is roasted nicely from both the sides, take it off from tava and serve hot crisp lachhedar paratha with curd, pickle or any chutney.

If you want to try lachhedar paratha without podina, then just don’t add mint leaves and follow the same process. See those layers – aren’t you dying to try!!

June 10, 2020April 28, 2022

Deeksha Pathak78 Comments