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The Hindu on One Page Cookbooks

The Hindu, India's national newspaper profiles one page cookbooks.

Easy Orissa recipes 10

This cookbook lists 10 Orissa recipes, greatly simplified, so that a first time cook can easily cook them. The following recipes are listed in this cookbook.For detailed recipes & pictures, check out the links from my fellow bloggers below.

1.: Dahi Nadia ( Coconut yogurt curry)
2.: Badi Chura ( Badi : sun dried lentil dumplings; Chura – powder)
3.: Aloo Chakata   (Aloo- Potato; Chakata : Boiled & mashed curry)
4.: Bhendi Bhaja   (Bhendi: Okra; Bhaja : stir-fried curry).
5.: Tomato Khatta  (Khatta : Sweet & Sour curries)
6.: Saaga  (Saaga : Spinach based curries) 
7.: Chakuli  (Crepe)
8.:.Badi Besara (Besara : Mustard paste based curry)
9.: Pakhala Bhata (Bhat : Rice) ( Fermented rice with yogurt)
10.: Dalma  (Dalma : Lentil based curry)  

Orissa As early as 2600 years ago, Kalinga, as Orissa was then known, was a regional power. It controlled the trade routes in the Bay of Bengal, colonizing parts of Southeast Asia. Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Java, Sumatra, Bali, Vietnam and Thailand still bear traces of Kalinga influence.  The fierce Kalinga was conquered in 300 BC by Nanda from Maghada (Bihar). After the overthrow of Nandas by Chandragupta Maurya, Kalinga declares independence. Chandra Gupta’s grandson Ashoka waged a bloody war and re-conquers Kalinga (and renounces war, sickened by the slaughter). A century later, Kalinga rises again under the Jain king Kharavela to conquer almost half of India. Various Hindu dynasties rule Orissa for the next 1500 years. Of these, Yayati 795 AD, who built the Puri temple was the most notable. In 1568, Orissa falls to Moghuls, whose rule lasts 200 years. Marathas rule for 70 years and British for the next 150 years (under whom almost a million starve to death due to famine (1865) and mismanagement). This once great nation which had remained a potent force for almost 1500 years was decimated in the last 500 years and is now counted among the less developed states of India, with many of its people earning a pittance as manual labourers in Indian metros. 

Oriya Cuisine :
The east Indian cuisine ( of Bihar, Bengal and Orissa)  is  characterized by the following :

Staple: Both Rice & flatbreads are consumed.
 Meats: Like all coastal regions, fish and other   seafood (crab, shrimp) are popular. Chicken and mutton are also favourites.

Typical breakfast : Bread (Luchi, poori, paratha, curry, porridge (rice flakes, suji, sago porridges)

Lunch & Dinner : Rice,  Lentils, veggies, meat

Oil : Mustard oil is preferred

Unique Bases: Mustard & poppy seed pastes.

Spices: All Indian spices ( except asafetida) are used. Panch phutana is widely used for flavouring vegetable curries.
Souring agent :  Ambula (Dried mangoes  is chiefly used in Orissa) &  Amchoor are preferred.

Badis : Sun dried, spiced lentil paste is fried and used in Oriya cuisine.

Most popular One page cookbooks

The posts listed below are some of the most popular. Stick them in your kitchen and you'll never run out of recipe ideas !

All one page cookbooks work the same way. Choose anything you like from column 1, column 2 and column 3. Cook as per master recipe. That's it! Learn one recipe and you've learnt them all !

The Hindu has nice things to say about One Page cookbooks !

1. Complete Indian cuisine in 4 A3 sized posters.
2. Chaat Varieties
3. Easy Podis ( Tamil, English)
4. Muesli
5. Cooking Solo for 500

6. Kitchen virgin survival manuals
7. Rotis
8. Biryani
9. Sambar
10. Simple Pickles

11.Vadam / Vadagam variations
12. Simple Aviyals
13. Kongunadu recipes
14. Instant Dosa varieties
15. Salad Varieties

16. Hotel room cooking
17. Thogayal
18. Pappu
19. Quickie Dinners
20. Quickie Breakfasts

Download the 1001 South Indian Curries eBook

All one page cookbooks are A4 sized images ( unless mentioned otherwise). If you have trouble printing them out, first click on them to get the full sized image. Now, save them to your computer. Then try using an image editing program like photoshop or try embedding the saved image in a word processing program. It should print okay.

People ask me all the time if cooking 1000 varieties of rasam / sambar is actually possible. The one page cookbook lists 1000 different, numbered recipes from 000 to 999, clearly proving it is possible. But wait, that is not all. In most one pagers, the last entry in each column is titled fusion, which means you can use any mix of the building blocks in that column. So the one pagers do not list just 1000 variations, but 9!*9!*9! ( read nine factorial cubed) variations. This is a ridiculously large number, which looks too silly to post here. So, you will not run out of recipes anytime soon !

Paruppu Keerai Variations ( Spinach & Lentil curry of Tamilnadu)

Theme : Any edible green & lentil can be cooked together into a spinach – lentil curry : The Paruppu Keerai.

Variations :

·         Use various lentils as listed in column 1. Larger lentils need        to be soaked overnight before being cooked.

·         Use various edible greens as listed in column 3.

·         Use various flavouring methods as listed in column 2.

 

Key Skill : Preparing spinach.
Wash spinach well under running water to remove soil. Chop off roots. If the spinach has a soft stem, it can be chopped whole. If it has a woody stem, pick out the leaves and discard the stem. Remove wilted / yellowish leaves.

 Once you have mastered this essential skill, you are all set to cook the variations of recipes listed below. Click the image to view and print the cookbook. For detailed recipes and pictures, check out my fellow bloggers below :

 0.:  Tuvaram paruppu keerai
1.:  Paasi paruppu keerai
2.:  Mysore paruppu keerai
3.:  Kadalai Paruppu keerai
4.:  Kollu Paruppu keerai
5.:  Paasi Payaru keerai
6.:  Karamani paruppu keerai
7.:  Fresh parpppu keerai
8.:  Mulai katiya paruppu keerai
9.:  Fusion : Try using collard greens, kale , bok choy or any edible green from across the world.

 Paruppu keerai or mashed lentil – spinach curries are  mild curries and can be eaten mixed with rice. It can also accompany chapattis.  They are popular in western Taminadu (Kongunadu) and in Andhra ( Palakura pappu, Thotakoora pappu etc) . Lentils cook fast and taste great with any kind of edible greens.  Fresh lentils or smaller lentils like tuvar dal / mung dal / Mysore dal need no presoaking. But larger / whole dals need to be soaked overnight. Using sprouted lentils gives an extra healthy set of recipes. Sprouted lentils cook fast and need no pre soaking. A huge variety of fresh lentils are available in South India, and all can be used in these recipes. Experiment with any kind of lentil / greens  from across the world to cook up never – before- cooked paruppu keerais ! Since all the above recipes are one pot recipes and take less than 15 minutes to cook, there are little chances of a mess !

30 min South Indian Thali

Click the image on the left to see the cookbook. This cookbook lists 10 simple recipes that make a traditional South Indian Thali. These 10 recipes can be cooked in 30 minutes by anyone. The following recipes are listed in this cookbook

1.: Andhra Pappula Podi

2.:  Andhra Nuvvula Podi

3.:  Kerala Thenga Chammandi

4.:  Karnataka Shunti Tambli

5.:  Tamil Thayir Pachadi

6.:  Aviyal 

7.:  Kerala Mezhukuperatti

8.:. Papad / Vadam 

9.:  Peerkangai Kootu

10.:Chettinadu Kara Kulambu

South Indian Cuisine : Building Blocks

Lentils, Tamarind, Yogurt and Coconut – this is all you need to cook up a huge array of South Indian curries. Let us see how each building block translates into recipes.

Lentils :

Podi  (Dry lentil powders)  : Blend roasted lentils with chilies and salt.

Coconut:

Thenga Chammandi (Blended coconut curry): Blend coconut tamarind and green chilies to a thick paste. Eat mixed with rice. Called Thenga Thpogayal in Tamilnadu, this is a idiot proof recipe. 

Kootu : Blend coconut, green chili, cumin  & salt  to a paste. Mix in boiled vegetables.  Simmer for a few minutes.

Yogurt :

Thayir pachadi : Raw yogurt curry.

Mix in grated veggies, chopped green chlies and salt with yogurt.

Yogurt + Coconut:

Aviyal : Blend yogurt, coconut, green chili, cumin & salt  to a paste. Mix in boiled vegetables.  Flavour with coconut oil and crushed curry leaves.

Tambli: Blend yogurt, coconut, green chili, salt and a variety of additives  to a paste.

Tamarind :                                         

Kulambu: Mix tamarind paste with water. Add sambar/ kulambu powder and salt. Mix in boiled vegetables.

Cooking Rice:

Add one cup pf rice and two cups of water to a pressure cooker. Close and pressure cook on medium heat for three whistles. Let cool and open.

Universal Garnish for all southie curries:

Heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of mustard seeds, a few curry leaves and a pinch of asafetida.

Fenugreek leaf recipes 10

Click the image on the left to see the cookbook. This cookbook lists 10 simple recipes using fenugreek leaves. For pictures / detailed recipes, check out my fellow bloggers below:

1.: Methi raita 

2.: Methi Chutney  

3.: Menthya Tambli     ( Udupi)

4.: Vendaiya Keerai Poriyal   ( Tamil)

5.: Methi Saag   

6.: Venthiya Keerai Kootu    (Tamil)

7.:  Methi Dal  

8.:. Methi rice  

9.:  Methi thepla   ( Gujrati)

10.: Methi Poori

 Fenugreek: Latin for "Greek hay" was originally cultivated as a fodder for cattle. It is used both as a herb (fresh / dried leaves) and as a spice (seeds). Fenugreek belongs to the legume family (Fabaceae - the family covering lentils, peas and beans).

India (particularly Rajasthan) is the largest producer of fenugreek in the world.  In most Indian languages, fenugreek is known by the same name ' Methi" / (Menthi : Sanskrit) (  Venthiyam : Tamil). 

Culinary Uses of fenugeek leaves : Fresh leaves are used across India like any other edible green. They are cooked into a huge array of curries. Dried leaves ( Kasuri Methi) are especially flavourful and a few pinches can be added to almost any north Indian curry, turning them into methi curries. 

Medicinal Uses: Fenugreek is one of the world's oldest medicinal herbs.   Cooked leaves are rich in iron and help prevent anemia. A paste of leaves can be used as  tan external ointment to treat swelling, pain or burns. The paste is also used as a hair vitalizer, when rubbed into the scalp before taking a bath. The same paste can be used as a face pack and is believed to revitalize skin, keeping it fresh and young. 

Buying Fenugreek leaves :
1. Choose fresh looking leaves without discolouration, holes etc. Avoid wilted leaves.
2. Early morning / late evening are usually the best time to buy them in India as the fresh leaves get delivered to cities twice a day.
3. Wash leaves well to remove dirt and soil sticking to them. Add them  to a colander and wash them under running water.

Fenugreek Seed recipes 10

Click the image on the left to see the cookbook. This cookbook lists 10 simple recipes with fenugreek seeds listed below.

For detailed recipes and pictures, check out my fellow bloggers below : 

1.:   Venthiya Poriyal (Tamil fenugreek dry curry)   

2.:   Hilbeh (Yemenite fenugreek spread)  

3.:   Tamil Venthiya Kulambu (Tamil fenugreek sour stew)

4.:   Universal South Indian Pickling powder

5.:   Menthi Podi (Karnataka fenugreek powder) 

6.:   Sprouted Fenugreek salad

7.:   North Indian Fenugreek Roti 

8.:.  Metkut (Marathi fenugreek powder) 

9.:   Marathi Methi Laddoo (Marathi fenugreek sweet balls)

10.: Venthiya Dosai (Tamil fenugreek crepe)

 Fenugreek: Latin for "Greek hay" was originally cultivated as a fodder for cattle. It is used both as a herb (fresh / dried leaves) and as a spice (seeds). Fenugreek belongs to the legume family (Fabaceae) - the same family of all lentils, peas and beans.

India (particularly Rajasthan) is the largest producer of fenugreek in the world.  In most Indian languages, fenugreek is known by the same name ' Methi" / (Menthi : Sanskrit) (  Venthiyam : Tamil)

Culinary Uses : Roast and ground seeds are used in pickle powders & curry powders. Whole seeds are fried in oil and used as flavouring agents. Dried leaves are used in curries as flavouring. Fresh leaves are used like other edible greens.

Medicinal Uses: Fenugreek is one of the world's oldest medicinal herbs.  Fenugreek is widely used by nursing mothers as a galactogen (milk supply stimulant).  The seeds are steeped in boiling water to make tea, which alleviates fever and menstrual cramps. Eating fenugreek is also seen as a remedy for bronchitis, coughs, & respiratory problems. Fenugreek oil is used in the manufacture of hair tonics. Ground fenugreek seeds are mixed with water/ yogurt to a paste and  rubbed into hair, and washed away after 30 minutes to prevent hair loss.