Vegetarian – Page 2

Sabudana/Sago vada

A Maharastran evening snack made with sago (tapoica pearls), potatoes and peanuts, which is crisp on the outer side with a soft texture inside.

Ingredients:

Sabudana/Sago/Tapoica pearls – 1/2 cup

Water – 3/4 cup for soaking sago

Roasted peanuts – 1/4 cup

Potatoes – 1 big or 2 medium sized

Green chillies – 2 finely chopped

Cumin seeds/Jeera – 1/2 tsp

Corainder leaves – 2 stalks chopped

Rice flour (optional if needed only) – 1 tbsp

Preparation:

Soak sago in 3/4 cup water for 2 hrs. Some sago may require longer time. You can find out by pressing the sago. If it is soft, it is soaked well or else, soak it for longer time.Drain it well in a colander and keep it aside.

Powder the roasted peanuts coarsely.

Boil the potatoes and mash them well. Do not overcook the potatoes.

In a mixing bowl, add the mashed potatoes, sago, coarsely powdered peanuts, green chillies, jeera, coriander leavess, salt and mix well.

Shape them into vadas or patties. They should not be too thick or too thin.

Heat oil in a pan. When it is hot, slip the vada into the pan. If it starts to break, add 1 tbsp rice flour to the dough, mix again and fry on medium flame. When it turns golden brown on one side, flip it to the other side. When it is done, take it off and drain it in a kitchen tissue and serve.

Coconut Thogayal

Chutneys

A coarse version of chutney which is mainly eaten with rice or pongal or kichdi. Super tasty when eaten with hot rice and ghee.

Ingredients:

Oil – 1 tsp

Grated coconut – 6 tbsp

Red chillies – 2

Kashmiri red chilli for colour (optional) – 1

Urad dhal – 1 tsp

Salt – 1/2 tsp or as per taste

Sugar – a pinch

Tamarind – a small marble sized one

Asafoetida – 1/4 tsp

Ginger (optional) – 1/4 inch piece

Curry leaves – 2

Seasoning:

Oil – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – 3 or 4

Udad dal – 1/4 tsp

Preparation:

Wash and soak tamarind in 1 tsp warm water so that it can be ground easily.

In 1/4 tsp oil, fry red chillies separately and then remove.Fry urad dhal, asafoetida and 1 or 2 curry leaves. Pulse red chillies and urad dhal for a second. Add ginger chopped and pulse once again.Then add all the other ingredients. Grind without water first, then add very little water. Make it into a slightly coarse paste. The thovayal should be a very thick consistency. Remove into a small bowl and season with mustard, urad dhal and few curry leaves.

Note: Some people roast the coconut slightly while roasting other ingredients but personally I don’t, as I like the fresh grated coconut.

Simple Tomato Dal with Tamarind

Vegetarian

Ingredients:

Tur dal – 1/2 cup

Medium onion – 1/2 chopped

Green chillies slit – 2

Tomatoes – 3 ripe

Garlic – 4 -5 pods

Tamarind – 1 small ball mixed in water

Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp

Salt – As needed

Seasoning:

Oil – 1 tsp

Mustard – 1 tsp

Jeera – 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida – a pinch

Whole red chilli – 1

Curry leaves – a sprig

Crushed pepper – 1/4 tsp

Preparation:

Cook with tur dal, onion, slit green chillies, ripe tomatoes, garlic pods, turmeric powder. After it is cooked, mash tomatoes well. Add salt, tamarind juice (depending on your preference for sourness) and boil well for 5 mins.

Put off the fire and add the items listed under “seasoning” and chopped coriander. Cover the lid immediately so that the flavours are retained inside.

Paruppu Rasam/Dal Rasam

Vegetarian

This version of rasam as the name implies is prepared using dal. It can be eaten with rice or can be had as a soup.

Ingredients:

Chana dal – 2 tbsp

Tomatoes – 2 big

Coriander leaves chopped – 1 tsp

Garlic – 2 cloves

Water -2 cups

Tamarind – 2 tsp concentrated pulp

Rasam powder

Jaggery powder – 1/4 tsp

Salt – as required

Seasoning:

Oil – 1 tsp

Mustard – 1 tsp

Jeera – 3/4 tsp

Asafoetida – a pinch

Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Rasam Powder :

Chana Dal – 2 tsps

Pepper – a little more than 1/2 tsp

Red chillies – 2

Jeera – 1 tsp

Asafoetida – a pinch

Mustard – 4 – 5 grains

Coriander leaves – 1/2 tsp

Preparation:

In a kadai, fry all the ingredients listed above for making ‘rasam powder’ to golden brown and take it off. Add coriander leaves, saute just once quickly and take off the pan. Pulse all the ingrredients in a blender.

Start by cooking the tur dal in cooker with 2 cups of water. Keep the flame on medium and after a whistle and keep it on flame for another 2 whistles. Once cooled, open the cooker and mash the dal and keep it aside.

In a kadai, add the water and dal from the cooker and add chopped tomatoes to it and cook it well. When it turns mushy, mash it and add tamarind paste and the jaggery powder. Boil it for 2 minutes and then add 2 tsps of rasam powder (home made or store bought) and stir and boil just once. Switch off the gas.

Heat kadai and add oil to it. When it turns hot, add the items listed under ‘seasonings’ to it. Pour over the seasonings on top of the rasam and mix well. Serve garnished with coriander leaves.

Vaangi Bhaath

Rice

A speciality of Karnataka made of rice and brinjals. Vangi is a term used for brinjals and bhath is rice. U can also use the same spice powder for making Capsicum rice, if you do not like brinjals. For vaangi bhath, preferably the long green brinjals are used. Papads and raita or plain curds can be served alongwith this rice.

Ingredients:

Onion – 1 small

Rice -2 cups

Water – 5 cups

Brinjals – 2 long

Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp chopped

Lemon juice

Green chillie – 1

Cashewnuts roasted for garnish

For the vangi bhath powder

Udad dal -1 tsp

Chana dal – 2 tsp

Coriander seeds – 2 1/2 tsp

Red chillies – 5-6

Cinnamon – 1 inch piece

Clove – 1

Khus khus – 1/2 tsp

Asafoetida – 1/2 tsp

Copra – 1 tbsp

Jeera – 1/2 tsp

Peppercorns – 3 or 4

Fry asafoetida and dals separately with very little oil. Keep aside. Fry red chillies separately and take it off. Then add cinnamon, cloves, pepper, jeera, coriander seeds and khus khus. Lightly fry copra separately and add it to the dal mixture and powder all together.

Seasoning:

Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp

Urad dal – 1/2 tsp

Chana dal – 3/4 tsp

Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Preparation:

Boil rice with water and salt. When it is cooked, drain the rice in a colander and keep it aside. Chop brinjals lengthwise and put them in a bowl of water to prevent it from discolouration. In a kadai, add oil and heat it. Add the green chillie which is slit lengthwise and finely chopped onions and saute well. The add the green brinjals slit lengthwise and fry for some time. Add 1/2 tsp spice powder (home made or store bought vaangi bhath powder) and cook the brinjals, taking care not to make it too mushy. Sprinkle some water, if required to cook the brinjals.

Heat oil and add the items listed under “seasonings” and keep it aside.

Now add the cooked rice to the brinjals, 2 tsp of the vaangi baath powder, the seasonings, chopped coriander leaves and 1/2 tsp of lime juice. Mix well and adjust the salt. If you prefer it more spicy, you may add more spice powder. Also, some of them prefer to add tamarind juice to the brinjals while cooking but I usually prefer lime juice.

Garnish with roasted cashewnuts.