Capsicum Stuffed Curry

Ingredients:

• Capsicum - 10 Nos.
• Gram Flour (Senagapindi) - 4 Tbsp.
• Red chilly Powder
• Cumin (jeera) Powder
• Karappodi (Curry leaves powder)
• Senagapodi (Roasted gram dal powder)
• Dry coconut powder
• Salt to taste

Preparation:

Make a mixture of all the above ingredients using a little bit of oil.

Remove the stalks and seeds from the capsicum. Put this stuffing inside it.

Alternative: Keep the stalks like that and dont remove them. Instead, make slits vertically and horizontally in the bottom and then stuff the capsicum.

Microwave the stuffed capsicums for about 7-8 minutes. Heat oil in a flat pan and fry these semi cooked capsicums. Make sure the capscicums doesnt break apart while frying. Fry it for about 10 mins until all the sides of the stuffed capsicums are well cooked and fried. Serve hot with rice.

P.S. You can add any podi (karappodi, chutney podi, senagapodi, kandi podi, curry powder ) you have at your home for this mixture.

Dosavakaya (Round yellow cucumber Pickle)

Ingredients:

• Dosakaya (Round yellow Cucumber) - 1 No.
• Mustard seed powder - roasted and finely powdered - 1/4 Cup
• Red chilly powder 1/4 cup
• Salt 1/4 cup
• Oil
• Pinch of turmeric

Preparation:

Cut the yellow cucumber (Dosakaya) into very small pieces without peeling the skin off.

Make a mixture of aava pindi ( mustard seed powder), red chilly powder, salt and turmeric with oil. To this mixture add the Dosakaya pieces. Let it be for 1 day and then add some more oil if necessary. Check the sourness and if its not enough add some lime juice to it.

Serve with rice. Also it can be mixed with mudda pappu (Dal). It tastes really good.

Thotakura Kura (Amaranth Leaves curry)

Ingredients:

• Thotakura (Amaranth leaves) - 2 bunches
• Green chillies 4-5 Nos.
• Ginger - 1 in. piece
• Cumin (Jeera) Powder - 1 tsp.
• Coriander (Dhaniya) Powder - 1 tsp.
• Gummadi vadiyalu (pumpkin chips)
• Salt to taste
• Mustard seeds
• Urad dal (Split black dal)
• Cumin seeds
• Dried red chillies

Preapration:

Wash Thotakura leaves properly and chop them nicely. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds, urad dal, dried red chillies and jeera. Let them splutter and then add the chopped green chillies and ginger. Fry it for a minute and then add the chopped thotakura leaves. Add salt and let it cook by covering the lid.

Once cooked, add jeera powder and dhaniya powder. Fry the gummadi odiyalu (pumpkin chips)separatley and add them to the curry. When odiyalu are added to the curry, they become soft and tender. If you dont like it that way you can always keep them separately and eat along with the curry.

P.S. To make it more spicy add more green chillies. Serve hot with rice.

Gongura Pulusu (Sorrel leaves Soup)

Ingredients:

• Gongura Leaves (Sorrel leaves) - 2 bunches
• Garlic - 4-5 Nos.
• Chana Dal (Senagapappu, Bengal gram) - 1 Tbsp.
• Onion Diced - 1 No.
• Green Chillies - 4-5 Nos.
• Chilli Powder - 1 Tbsp.
• Rice Flour (Biyyappindi) - 1 tsp.
• Turmeric pinch
• Salt to tsate

Seasoning:

• Oil
• Dried red chillies
• Mustard seeds
• Hing

Preparation:

Wash the Gongura leaves thoroughly and chop them. Add Onions, salt, Chilli powder, turmeric and green chillies and Chana dal to it. Pressure cook this mixture.

Alternately: Instead of cooking this mixture in the pressure cooker, cook it separately in a sauce pan and dont add chana dal to it. But cook chana dal separately and then add it to the cooked Gongura mixture.

Add rice flour to it by making a paste with water out of the rice flour. Do the seasoning and then fry the garlic pieces separatley and add it to the gongura pulusu.

If the sourness of the gongura pulusu is not enough, add some tamarind juice to it. Serve hot with rice. Tastes very good. Enjoy cooking !!!!!

Pappu Charu (Lentils and Vegs Stew)

Ingredients:

• Toor Dal (Red Gram)- 1/2 Cup
• Tamarind
• Jaggery - Small lemon sized.
• Tomato
• Diced Bottle Gourd (Sorakaya) - 1 Cup
• Drumsticks (Mulakkaya) 4-5Nos.
• Small Onions 4-5 Nos.
• Coriander leaves
• Pinch of turmeric
• Red chilly Powder - 1tsp.
• Salt to taste

Seasoning:

• Oil
• Mustard seeds (Aavalu)
• Asefotida (Inguva)

Preparation:
Cook Toor dal in pressure cooker. Mash it properly.
In a saucepan put tamarind water and add salt, turmeric, red chilly powder, jaggery and all the vegetables. Let it cook until the vegetables are cooked well.
Add the mashed dal to it. Cook it for a long time say at least for 30 mins. Do the tadka and garnish it with coriander leaves. Serve hot with rice.

Spring Onion (Scallion Stew) Sambar (Ulli Kadala Sambar)

Ingredients:

• Toor Dal (Red Gram)- 1/2 Cup
• Spring Onions - 5-6 Nos.
• green Chillies - 2-3 Nos.
• Tamarind
• Coriander Leaves
• Jaggery small piece
• Salt to taste
• Pinch of turmeric

Powder:

• Chana dal (Senagapappul, Bengal gram) - 1tbsp.
• Coriander Seeds - 1tbsp.
• Dried red chillies - 2Nos.
• Black Peppers (Miriyalu) - 4 Nos.
• Rice - 1/2 tbsp.
• Dried Coconut - small piece (alt. can use dry coconut powder)

Seasoning:

• Oil
• Mustard Seeds (Aavalu)
• Asefotida (Inguva)

Preparation:

Cook Toor dal separately in pressure cooker. Mash the dal properly.

Cut spring Onions (stems) into very small pieces. Leave the Onion in the end as it is. In a saucepan put tamarind water and add the chopped spring onions and the onions. Add chopped green chillies to it. Add salt to taste and a pinch of turmeric. Let it cook for sometime untill the leaves are well cooked. Add the mashed dal to it. Cook it for some more time.

Heat very little oil in a pan and fry the ingredients for powder. Fry till golden brown. Powder these to make sambar powder.

Add little water to the sambar powder to make it a paste and add the paste to the sambar. Add the small Jaggery piece. Do the tadka with Aavalu (mustard seeds) and inguva (Asefotida). Garnish it with coriander leaves. Serve hot with rice.

Bisibele Bhath

Ingredients:

• Rice - 1.5 Cup
• Toor Dal (Kandipappu, Red gram) - 3/4 Cup.
• Tamarind Paste - 2 tsp.
• Oil - 1/2 Cup
• Turmeric - pinch
• Salt to taste

Vegetables:

• Potato (Diced) - 1 Nos.
• Cauloflower - 6-8 florets
• Green peas - 1/2 cup
• Carrot (Diced) - 1 No.
• Chopped Beans - 8-10 Nos.
• Chopped Tomato - 1 No.
• Chopped Onion - 1 No.
• Chopped Green Chillies - 2-3 Nos.

For Powder:

• Fenugreek Seeds (menthulu) - 1/4 tsp.
• Black Pepper (Miriyalu) - 1/4 tsp.
• Urad Dal (Minapappu, split black dal) - 2tsp.
• Chana Dal (senagapappu, split bengal gram) - 2tsp.
• Coriander Seeds (Dhaniyalu) - 2tsp.
• Mustard Seeds (Aavalu) - 1tsp.
• Jeera (Cumin)- 1/2tsp.
• Dried Red Chillies - 2-3 Nos.
• Cardomom (Elaichi) - 2Nos.
• Cloves - 8-10Nos. (Less for less spice)
• Cinammon Stick - 1in.
• Marathi Mogga - 1 No.

Seasoning:

• Ghee
• Mustard seeds (Aavalu)
• Asefotida (Inguva)
• Chopped Corinader Leaves

Preparation:

Cook the rice and toor dal separately. Cook the vegetables ( Potato, GreenPeas, Cauliflower, Beans, Carrot, Tomato) separately in microwave or Pressure cooker. Set Rice, dal and Vegetables aside.

Heat a little bit of oil in a pan and add all the ingredients for the powder. Fry them for 5 min. Let it cool completely. Powder the above mixture. Add a little bit of water and let it sink in for some time. Add some more water and grind it to a paste. keep it aside.

Heat 1/2 cup of oil in a pan. Add chopped onions and green chillies and fry till transparent. Add chopped tomatoes and fry till cooked. Add the rice, dal, cooked vegetables, salt and turmeric powder. Mix well and add tamarind paste and the above paste. Let it cook for 10-15 mins on a low flame.

For seasoning, heat ghee and add mustard seeds and Inguva and add it to bisibele bath. Garnish it with coriander leaves. Serve hot with Potato chips or Saggubiyyam (Rice) vadiyalu. Serves 4 people.

Menthi majjiga (Seasoned Buttermilk)

Ingredients:

• Majjiga (Yogurt drink, buttermilk) - 1/2 lt.
• Chopped green chillies - 2 nos.
• Pinch of turmeric
• Curry leaves
• Salt to taste
• Cilantro

Seasoning:

• Ghee
• Fenugreek seeds (Mentulu) - 3 or 4 seeds
• Mustard seeds (avalu)
• Jeera (Cumin)
• Ajwan seeds (vamu, bishop's weed) - 1tsp.
• Asafoetida (inguva)
• Dried red chillies

Preparation:

Add salt, turmeric, cilantro and curry leaves to the "majjiga". Add chopped green chillies. Heat ghee and first put fenugreek seeds until dark. Then add the rest of the tadka ingredients sequentially. Serve along with plain dal (mudda pappu).

Palakura pappu (Spinach dal)

Ingredients:

• Moong Dal (pesara pappu, Split green gram) - 1/2 cup
• Chana Dal (senaga pappu, Split black gram) - 2 Tb. sp.
• Spinach - 1 bunch
• Green chillies
• Tamarind (paste)
• Red chilly powder (karam)
• Cilantro
• Jaggery (very small piece)
• Salt to taste

Seasoning:

• Oil - 1 tsp.
• Urad dal (minappappu, split black gram)
• Mustard seeds (avalu)
• Asaefotida (hing, inguva)

Preparation:

Wash spinach thoroughly and chop it. Pressure cook dals (moong and chana) and spinach. Grind salt, green chillies, cilantro and tamarind to a paste. Add the paste to the cooked dal. Add jaggery and red chilly powder. Do the tadka and add it to the dal. Serve hot with rice and a fry curry.

Nimmakaya Charu (Lemon Rasam, Lemon lentil Soup)

Ingredients:

• Lemons – 1 no.
• Tomato – 2 nos.
• Toor Dal (Kandi pappu, red gram) – 1 cup
• Green chillies (chopped) – 2 small
• Ginger (chopped) – 1in
• Cilantro (chopped)
• Black Pepper (miriyalu) – 1 tsp.
• Jeera (curry)– 1 tsp.
• Pinch of turmeric.
• Salt to taste.

Seasoning (popu, tadka)

• Ghee – 1 tsp.
• Red chillies – 2 no.
• Mustard seeds – ½ tsp.
• Jeera – ½ tsp.

Preparation:

Pressure cook toor dal and tomatoes. Mash the cooked dal. (Note: Remove excess water if any from the cooked dal and add it to the mashed dal). Add 1 cup of water if needed to make it rasam (soup) like. Add green chillies and ginger to the rasam and let it simmer for 5-10 mins.
Powder black pepper and jeera and add it to the rasam. Add turmeric and salt after 5 mins.
Seasoning (tadka, popu): Heat ghee and add the above seasoning sequentially and let the mustard seeds splitter.Add the seasoning to the rasam.
Garnish it with cilantro and let it be.
Squeeze lemon juice to the rasam before serving (note: not while on the stove).