A cool raita with the fresh fruits and vegetables of summer tastes heavenly with rice or flat breads. It can serve as a dip, dressing or even as a complete breakfast.The preparation cannot be any simpler – just chop up the summer goodies, mix in with yogurt and serve. Flavouring is optional. Yogurt never fails to please !
And this goes to Moonspice’s Summer fruit and vegetables event.
This cookbook lists 10 simple curries, mostly South Indian, using three or less ingredients. It is greatly simplified so that a first time cook can easily cook them. For detailed recipes, check out the links below. 1.: Yogurt The best loved ‘ recipe’ is the yogurt. Yogurt mixed with cooked rice is consumed at the end of a meal across south India.
2. Plain boiled tuvar dal is eaten mixed with cooked rice and ghee at the start of a meal.
3. Mezhku Peratti is plain boiled vegetables served with a Coconut oil dressing.
4. Thayir Pachadi (Raw Yogurt curry) is just chopped salad vegetables mixed with yogurt.
5. Kandi Podi (Lentil - chili powder) is just roasted tuvar dal blended to a powder with red chili and salt. A variety of pulses like urad dal / chana dal can be used in place of or in addition to tuvar dal to create a range of Podis.
6. Kobbari Pachadi (Coconut – chili blended curry) Coconut blended with chili and salt is a much loved blended curry. Variants call for the addition of a bit of tamarind, onions, garlic clove , roasted peanuts or cooked gram (pottu kadalai / Bhuna chana) which are blended along with coconut.
7. Mamdikkaya Pappu (Mango- Lentil curry) is mango and lentils simmered together. Boiling chopped vegetables along with dal into a thick curry is a specialty of Andhra cuisine. Instead of mango, dosakkaki ( round cucumber, a specialty of Andhra), spinach or even young tamarind leaves are used.
8. Vankaya Pachhi Pulusu is grilled and mashed eggplant mixed in with raw tamarind paste and spices.
9. Hmarcha Rawt (Chili Chutney ) cooked in Mizoram is dry roasted green/ red chilies crushed with salt and ginger.
10. Chena Arachu Kalakki (Yam and Yogurt blended curry). Boiled vegetables , especially yam , blended together with coconut, yogurt and chili is the Arachu Kalakki ( Blended and mixed). This is a typical Kerala Brahmin curry. Variants call for pickled mango / gooseberry in place of boiled yam.
Lassi is a blended yogurt drink, with the consistency of a milkshake. It may be sweet or salty, flavoured or plain, shaken, stirred or blended, simple or bursting with goodies like cream, nuts and fruits. In Rajasthan, a special kind of lassi, the Bhang lassi, even has marijuana in it. It is perfectly legal and is even sold in government approved stalls. It comes in different strengths, with the most potent of them being advertised as “Full power, 24 hour, no toilet, no shower” ! Bhang lassi is also made and consumed across North India especially during Holi, the festival of colours. Regular lassis are very popular across India. Punjab is the undisputed lassi capital where a huge variety of lassi is drunk from supersized glasses.
Though traditional lassis are made from cow/ buffalo milk, they can be made from any milk, including soy milk curdled into yogurt. Thin lassis are made from buttermilk, thick lassis are made from yogurt and even thicker ones can be made by blending yogurt with milk powder or cream. Column 1 lists these variations. With advances in food processing, we now have ready access to a variety of flavoured yogurts/ yogurt smoothies. All these can be turned into delicious lassis.
Column 2 lists the different flavouring techniques. Many lassis are not flavoured. But a variety of flavourings like cardamom, saffron etc can be used.
Almost anything edible can be blended in with the lassi as listed in column 3. A wide variety of fruit, nuts, honey etc can be blended in.
A rich glass of lassi can become a full meal in itself. Use the table and the model recipes below to cook up your own variation of this classic drink.
Off this goes to Mythreyee's Cool Desserts.
Model recipes :
Lemon Lassi
Raspberry Lassi
Mango lime lassi
Orange flavoured lassi
Cardamom lassi
Watermelon Lassi
Mango Cardamom lassi
Avocado Lassi
Rasberry Lassi
Orange Flower Lassi with Saffron
Coconut and Lime Lassi
Strawberry Lassi
Cardamom Lassi
Black Grape Lassi
Banana Lassi
Salty Mango Lassi with nutmeg
Vanilla flavoured lassi with mint
Mango pineapple lassi
| One Page Cookbooks
All recipes copyrighted. No reproduction / commercial use without permission. Siramki@Gmail.com | ||
| This cookbook lists 1000 Tambli recipes from 000 to 999. The three digits denote the base, flavouring & additives. Master Recipe:: To a blender/ mixie, add half a handful of chopped coconut, a small chopped green chili(or a dry red chili) and three pinches of salt. Blend to a smooth paste, adding a spoon or two of water. Add a base from column 1, an additive from column 3 and blend again. Mix in a cup of yogurt. Mix with flavouring from column 2 and serve. (Instead of yogurt you can also use buttermilk or half a spoon of tamarind paste/ kokum syrup dissolved in a cup of water). | ||
| Base | Flavouring | Additive |
| 0.: None | 0.: Mustard Heat half a spoon of oil. Add a pinch of mustard. | 0.: Veggies Take ½ handful of chopped veggies like carrot/ cucumber. |
| 1.: Dhania Take three pinches of coriander seeds. | 1.: Cumin Heat a spoon of oil. Add a pinch of cumin | 1.: Spinach Take half a handful of chopped spinach (raw or stir fried). |
| 2.: Ginger Take a small bit of ginger | 2.: Curry leaves Heat a spoon of oil. Add a pinch of mustard and a few curry leaves. | 2.: Onion Take half a handful of chopped onions / shallots/ spring onions. Need not be blended. Mix & serve. |
| 3.: Garlic Take a chopped garlic clove. | 3.: Cilantro Take three pinches of chopped cilantro. | 3.: Flowers Take a handful of tender banana flowers./ Ixora Grandiflora. |
| 4.: Cumin Take two pinches of cumin. | 4.: Asafetida Heat a spoon of oil. Add a pinch of mustard and a pinch of asafetida. . | 4.: Other Leaves Take half a handful of chopped, tender leaves of cashew, mango, lemon, pomegranate, cauliflower etc., |
| 5.: Fenugreek Take a pinch of fenugreek powder. | 5.: Lentils Heat a spoon of oil. Add two pinches of mustard and urad dal. Stir for a few seconds. | 5.: Pickles Take half a handful of chopped mango / gooseberry pickled in brine. |
| 6.: Sesame Take three pinches of sesame seeds. | 6.: Fenugreek Heat a spoon of oil. Add a pinch each of mustard and fenugreek. | 6.:. Herbs Take half a handful of chopped mint / cilantro. |
| 7.: Poppy Seeds Take three pinches of poppy seeds. | 7.: Red Chili Heat a spoon of oil. Add a pinch each of mustard, a few curry leaves and a torn red chili. Stir for a few seconds. | 7.: Seeds Take half a handful of snake gourd one peeled, chopped and boiled jack fruit seed or cucumber seeds.. |
| 8.: Pepper , Take two pinches of pepper powder. | 8.: Turmeric Heat a spoon of oil. Add a pinch each of mustard, a few curry leaves and a pinch of turmeric powder. Remove from fire. | 8.: Others Take two small bits of sun dried pomegranate skin/ gooseberry. Soak in water for an hour. Drain. Or stir fry half a handful of ridge gourd peel. |
| 9.: Fusion Use your fav base or any combo of the above. | 9.: Fusion Use your favourite base or use any combo of the above. | 9.: Fusion Use your fav additive or use any combination of the above. |
| Sample Recipes :: Soppina Tambli 001 :: Jeerage Carrot Tambli 400 :: Mente Kande Tambli 520 :: Kodi ere Tambli 014 | ||
| e Tambli is a much loved, uncooked, blended sour curry revered in Karnataka / Konkani / Udupi cuisine. “Tambali antha ootavilla
A play on the words Tambli (the curry) and Kambli (a blanket), this Kannada saying avers that there is no meal like the one with Tambli and no better way to keep warm than the Kambli. Tambli can be looked at as a combination of two classic families – the raita and the coconut chutney. Almost anything blended in with coconut tastes good and almost anything mixed with yogurt tastes good. So it is no wonder that almost anything blended into a Tambli turns out to be delicious. The list of possible Tamblis are endless, and therein lies the genius of Indian cuisine! | A Tambli is always uncooked, served cold, sour, and has coconut. Apart from these basic guidelines, it is so versatile that almost anything can be blended in. Depending on what base ( column 1) is blended in, the name of the Tambli changes as in Jeerage Tambli (Cumin), Mente Tambli (Fenugreek), Kottambari Tambli (Dhania), Shunti Tambli (Ginger), Yellu Tambli (Sesame seeds), Shunti Tambli ( ginger) and so on. A variety of flavouring is mixed in the Tambli just before serving as listed in column 2, though a Tambli tastes just great without any additional flavouring. Almost anything edible can be blended into the Tambli as listed in column 3 to create a never ending variety of Tamblis. These change name of Tambli as in Bondi Tambli (Grilled Banana flower), Daasavala Poo Tambli (with chopped Hibiscus flower), Kotte Tambli (with mashed Jackfruit seeds), Soppina Tambli (spinach), Kodi ere Tambli (Tender leaves of mango, cashew, lemon/ pomegranate), Kukku Tambli (with pickled mangoes), Saute Bith Tambli (Cucumber seeds), Nelli Tambli (fresh/ sun dried Gooseberry), Nellindi Tambli (Pickled gooseberry), Koodi Tambli (Tender Guava leaves) etc.,. When onion/ hibiscus flowers are added to the tambli, they are not blended to a paste, but are just chopped up and mixed in. Alle Kande Tambli (Ginger- onion) and Kande Tambli (Onion) are popular, but Tamblis cooked in the temple town of Udupi, do not use onion. Finally, we have new families of Tamblis made from other souring agents, (kokum syrup/ tamarind) like the .Kokum Tambli. All Tamblis are served cold and eaten mixed with cooked rice, at the very beginning of a meal. | |
The long and peaceful existence of the Saraswat Brahmins, who had emigrated to Kashmir due to the drying up of the river Saraswati, came to an end in the fourteenth century, when Kashmir fell to the Afghans. Since then, their story has been a tragedy, which continues to this day. Hounded out of their homeland, the gentle Pundits still remain homeless, in their own country. This cookbook lists 10 vegetarian Kashmiri Pundit recipes, greatly simplified so that a first time cook can easily cook them. There is a dearth of this delightfully original cuisine on the Net. For detailed recipes, check out Sonya Atal Sapru’s ‘Zaika’, published by Harper Collins.
The following recipes are listed in this cookbook.
1.: Kishmish Raita (Raisins in Yogurt) is just yogurt mixed with soaked raisins.
2.: Patta Gobi Sabji ( Cabbage curry) is made from stir fried cabbage.
3.: Palak Baingan Sabji (Eggplant Spinach curry) is the unusual combination of eggplant cooked with spinach.
4.: Khatte Baingan (Sour Eggplant curry ) is stir fried eggplant garnished with lemon juice.
5.: Navratan Chutney (Sweet & Sour Mango Chutney) is cooked from raw mangoes and sugar into a jam.
6.: Urad Dal: (Urad dal curry) is boiled white urad dal curry.
7.: Channe ki Dal (Bengal dal curry ) uses Bengal gram as the curry base.
8.: Arhar Dal (Blended coconut – yogurt curry) is cooked from boiled tuvar dal.
9.:. Shaljum Dal (Turnip and Mung dal curry) is the unusual combination of tuvar dal cooked with turnips.
10.: Khatti Arhar Dal (Sour tuvar dal curry) is boiled tuvar dal soured with lemon juice.
Adai, (Savoury south Indian pancakes) is commonly eaten throughout Tamilnadu. These thick savoury pancakes are easy to make. Soak a cereal like rice/ wheat or pulses like chana dal / tuvar dal or a mixture of both. Grind them to a thick batter with some coconut, green chili and salt. Spread into thick pancakes on a hot skillet and cook till they are golden – your Adai is ready. A variety of flavourings and additives can be added to this batter, giving us numerous variations of Adai.Any cereal / pulses can soaked, ground up and used to make Adai. However, Some pulses like red kidney beans (rajma) are toxic when uncooked and should always be cooked.
The Base: See column 1
A cereal alone can be used to make Adai like the Rice Adai.
A mixture of rice and lentils is used for the common Adai.
Use sprouted lentils and we have the Mulai kattya adai.
Use cooked rice and we have the Cooked Rice Adai.
Use yogurt for soaking instead of water and you get Yogurt adai.
A mixture of cereals and pulses can be used to make a cereal - lentil Adai
Finger millet is used to make the Ragi Adai.
Use semolina in place of a cereal and gram flour in place of a pulse and you have the instant Adai, the Rava Adai.
A pulse or a mixture of pulses can be used to make the Lentil Adai (Paruppu Adai).
Flavouring: See column 2
A wide variety of stuff can be used to flavour Adai. Ginger, garlic, curry leaves, red chilies & turmeric are commonly used. You can try any of your favourite flavouring agents in place of traditional ones. Though not traditionally cooked, you can try experiment with Rosemary / Sage / Oregano / Thyme or other herbs.
Additives: See column 3
A variety of additives as listed in column 3 can be mixed in the batter. Shallots, spinach, green chili, herbs are commonly used. Try experimenting by adding chopped nuts or any other edibles to cook your own adais.
And this goes to the Well Seasoned cook's Pancakes on Parade
Uttappams are south Indian pancakes, normally made from a fermented batter of rice and urad dal. Unlike a regular uttappam, which takes over a day to prepare, instant uttappams can be cooked in 10 minutes flat. Just mix a variety of flours and water to make a batter, add some baking powder to leaven , cook into a thick disc and your uttappam is ready. By varying the base, additives and toppings, we can cook up hundreds of instant uttappams.
Change base :
A variety of flours can be used to make instant uttappams, but some flours like ragi / millet flour are not very easy to work with. It is for this reason they are combined with wheat flour. Once you gain confidence, you can gradually reduce the amount of wheat flour used.
Additives
A variety of additives from cumin to jaggery is used to spice up instant uttappams. Just mix them in along with the batter.
Topping
Though they taste great without any topping, a variety of toppings ranging from plain butter to chopped sausages can be used.
And this goes to the Well Seasoned cook's Pancakes on Parade
I found the story of Khojas and their conversion to Islam fascinating. From Sindh, the conversion spread to Kutch, through Kathiawar and later to Mumbai. Khoja cuisine, though built around meat, respects the local beliefs and does not include beef. Khojas still retain a large dose of Hindu culture, traditions and beliefs. Their funeral customs involve the sprinkling of holy water to the reading of Das-Avatar, written by the Persian missionary, Hajji Saiyid Sadr al-Din who successfully presented Islam to Hindus in form that appealed to their beliefs and traditions, even making Imam Ali, the Prophet’s son-in-law, the tenth Avatar of Vishnu !This cookbook lists 10 simple vegetarian Khoja recipes. All these recipes in this cookbook are eaten with a variety of pulao, biriyani, naan and rotis. They are greatly simplified so that a first time cook can easily cook them. For detailed recipes, check out Fateema Hooda’s Khoja Khana.
The following recipes are listed in this cookbook.
1.: Batate Ka Salan ( Potato Tomato Curry) Unlike Mogul cuisine, Khoja cuisine uses fried mustard and curry leaves as flavouring, as this curry demonstrates.
2.: Guvar Batata (Cluster Beans - Potato - Tomato curry) is cluster beans, potato and tomato cooked with spices and flavoured by the famous Hara Masala.
3.: Turiya Vatana (Ridge Gourd, Peas & Tomato curry ) is a mix of vegetables flavoured with coriander, cumin , turmeric and Hara Masala.
4.: Kanda Batata (Onion, Potato, Tomato curry) is another combination of vegetables with similar flavouring as above.
5.: Baingan Batata: (Eggplant, Potato Tomato Curry) marries eggplant with potatoes, a combination which is not very common.
6.: Sing Vatana Batata (Drumstick- potato- peas curry) uses drumstick, which is almost never used in Mogul cuisine.
7.: Kachumbar (Vegetable Salad) is an easily prepared salad, eaten with both rice and rotis.
8.: Mint chutney is a blend of mint, coriander and coconut.
9.:. Baingan Ka Bharta is the much loved, grilled and mashed eggplant curry.
10.: Dahi ki Kadi (Yogurt Curry) is yogurt simmered with gram flour and spices. I've modified the original recipe to include Hara masala, which packs quite a punch!
