Ladies Finger / Okra fried in Soda Batter

Ladies Finger / Okra fried in Soda Batter 

It serves as a side dish or a crispy snacks or an appetizer. Easy to make and tasty too.   

 

Ingredients 

150 grams Okra cut into half lengthwise

Batter 

Oil for deep frying 

Method 

Take a wok, add oil, let it heat, dip each pieces separately in the batter and fry it in the hot oil till crispy and brown. Serve hot.

For the Batter 

Ingredients 

1 cup All Pupose Flour

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Chilli powder

1/2 tsp Curry Powder

1/2 tsp Carom seeds

Club soda/ Drinking soda as per the requirement 

Method

Mix all the above dry ingredients and add soda little at a time to make a medium thick batter.

Orange Prawns served with Prawn and Egg Fried Rice

Orange Prawns 

To a Marinate the Prawns 
Ingredients

1 bowl of medium size Prawns

1 Egg White 

1 tbsp Soy Sauce 

Salt to taste 

Method 

Take a bowl and combine all the above ingredients and keep it aside for 10 to 15 minutes. 

For Frying the Marainated Prawns

Ingredients 

Marinated Prawns

1/2 cup Corn Starch

Oil for frying 

Method 

Take a wok, add oil and heat it. Add the corn starch in a plate. Take one piece of prawns at a time and coat it with corn starch. Add the coated prawns in the hot oil and fry till brown in colour. Keep it on a absorbent paper. 

For the Sauce

Ingredients 

1/2 cup Fresh Orange juice

1/2 cup Chicken stock

1 big size Garlic clove grated 

1 tsp Orange zest

1 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar

1½ tbsp Soy sauce

Salt to taste

2 tsp Brown Sugar Or Sugar 

1 tbsp Corn Starch dissolved in 1 tbsp of water 

1 tsp Sesame oil

Method 

In a mixing bowl combine all the above ingredients and keep it aside. 

To make Orange Prawns

Ingredients 

Fried Prawns

Sauce 

1 tsp Sesame oil 

1/2 tsp Spring Onions chopped  

Method

Take a wok, add the oil, let it heat, add the sauce. Stir it and on low heat cook the sauce till it starts to thicken. Add the prawns and stir it. Cook the prawns in the sauce till the sauce has thicken and incooperated well in the sauce. Sprinkle spring onion for garnishing. Serve with Prawn and Egg Fried Rice. 

Prawn and Egg Fried Rice

Ingredients 

4 cups cooked Rice

1/2 bowl of small size Fried Prawns ( Marinated with 1 tbsp Soy sauce and egg, coated with cornflour and fried) 

1 bowl of Fried Egg pieces ( 2 Egg beaten with salt and fried) 

2 tsp Garlic grated 

1 tsp Ginger grated 

1/2 cup Red , Yellow and Green Capsicum diced 

1/4 cup Cabbage shredded 

1/4 cup Mushroom sliced 

1 Onion chopped 

1 tbsp Spring Onion chopped 

Salt to taste 

2 tsp Soy Sauce

1 tsp Fish Sauce

1 tsp Chilli Vinegar

2 tbsp Sesame Oil 

 

Method 

Heat the oil in a wok, heat the oil on high flame. Add  the garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute. Add the capsicum, cabbage, mushrooms, and onion and sauté for a few minutes. Add the soy sauce, fish sauce, vinegar. Stir it. Add the prawns. Stir it and add the rice and the salt. Stir fry the rice  till  the rice has incoperated well with the other ingredients. Garnish with spring onions and fried egg pieces. Serve hot. 

Masala Dosa served with Brahmin style Sambar

Masala Dosa served with Brahmin style Sambar 

For the Dosa Batter

Ingredients

11/2 cups Rice

1/2 cup Urad dal / Split Black Gram

Salt to taste

Method

Separately soak rice and urad dal at least overnight in water. Grind the dal and rice. Leave it to ferment overnight. Add salt and mix it.

Potato Filling

Ingredients

2 large Potatoes boiled and chopped

2 Green chillies chopped

Few Curry Leaves

1 Dry Red Chilli broken into pieces

1/2 tsp Chana Dal /  Yellow Split peas

1/2 tsp Urid Dal / Split Black Gram

1/2 tsp Mustard seed

2 Pinches of Asafoetida

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

Salt to taste

1 tbsp Oil

Few Coriander  Leaves chopped

Method

Take a wok, add oil, let it heat. Add the chana dal and urid dal, stir it for few seconds, add the mustard seeds, let it crackle. Add the red chilli and curry leaves, saute it for few seconds, add the asafoetida and stir it. Add the potatoes, salt and turmeric powder. Stir and cook for 2 minutes, garnish with coriander leaves and keep it aside.

For the Masala Dosa

Ingredients

Batter

Potato Filling

Ghee for Drizzling on the Dosa

Method

Take a dosa skillet. Let the skillet warm up. Add a ladle full of batter and swirl and spread the batter on the skillet. Drizzle ghee on top and let it cook till it becomes light brown, add 2 tbsp of the filling and spread it. Fold the dosa into half. Serve it hot with Sambar and Coconut Chutney..

Brahmin Style Sambar 

Brahmin Style Sambar Powder

Ingredients

1 tbsp Toor Dal

1/2 tbsp Chana Dal

10 Red Dry Chillies

4 tbsp Coriander seeds

1/4 tbsp Fenugreek seeds

1/4 tbsp Pepper Corns

1/4 tbsp Turmeric powder

Method

Roast all the above ingredients except for the turmeric powder. Cool it. Add it in a grinder with the turmeric powder. Grind it in to a fine powder.

To make the Sambar

Ingredients

1/2 cup Toor dal washed and soaked

1 Potato peeled and cut into cubes

1 Tomato cut into cubes

1 Carrot cut into pieces

1/4 cup small Onions peeled

1/2 cup Pumpkin cut into cubes

2 Green chillies cut into pieces

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

2 tbsp Sambar powder

Salt to taste

2 tbsp Fresh Coconut grated  or Desiccated Coconut powder

1 tsp Tamarind paste

1 tbsp Jaggery

For seasoning

1/4 tsp Mustard seeds

1 Red Dry Chilli broken into pieces

Few Curry leaves

2 Pinches of Asafoetida

2 tbsp Coconut Oil

Few Coriander leaves chopped

Method

Take a pot, add the dal, turmeric powder, salt and 4 cups of water. Let it boil on low flame for 15 minutes. Add the vegetables. Let it continue to boil till the vegetables and the dal is almost cooked. Add water if required. Add the coconut grated or powder, sambar powder, salt, tamarind paste and jaggary. Simmer for 10 minutes more. Meanwhile take a pan, add the oil. Heat it. Add the mustard seeds, red chilli, curry leaves and asafoetida. Sauté for few seconds. Add it into the Sambar. Simmer for 2 minutes more.  Add the coriander leaves and serve hot.

Pizza Uttappam

Pizza Uttappam 

Indo Western Fusion cooking... Italy meets South India.. Uttappam is a South Indian Dish and it is served with an Italian Pizza topping.. 

For the Pizza Sauce 

Ingredients

3 Ripe Tomatoes cut into cubes 

4 big size Garlic pod chopped

1 Onion chopped 

Salt to taste

1 tbsp Sugar

1/2 tsp Dry Mix Herbs

1/2 tsp Pepoer powder 

1 cup Tomato purée

1 tbsp Olive oil

Method

In a wok, add olive oil. Add garlic and sauté for a minute, add the onions. Sauté till translucent. Add the tomatoes, stir and cook it for 5 minutes. Add the tomato purée, salt, pepper powder, sugar and mix herbs, stir and let it simmer for 5 minutes more. Keep it aside. 

For the Dosa / Uttappam Batter

Ingredients 

3 cups Rice

1 cup Urid Dal / Split Black Gram 

1 tbsp Fenugreek seeds 

Salt to taste 

Method 

Wash and soak all the 3 above ingredients seprately overnight. Grind the ingredients in a grinder and keep it for fermenting for 8 hours. Add salt and if required then add water for the right consistency. 

P.S. I normally grind a kg of rice and 300 grams of dal and divide the batter as per my requirements into separate vessels and refrigerate it. 

We can also take 2:1 proportion of rice and dal. 3:1 proportion of rice and dal gives crispy dosas.

For the Pizza Uttapam

Ingredients

Pizza sauce

1 bowl of Dosa / Uttappam batter 

1 cup Mozzarella and Cheddar cheese mix grated 

2 tbsp Black Olives sliced 

2 tbsp Red picked chillies sliced 

1 Onion sliced

1 Green Capsicum sliced

1/2 Red Capsicum sliced

1/2 Yellow Capsicum sliced 

8 Mushrooms sliced 

Sprinkle of Pizza mix dried herbs 

Olive oil to drizzle 

Method

Take a pan, add one ladle full of batter in the pan, keep it on a low flame, sprinkle some cheese, add the pizza sauce on the batter, arrange the vegetables on by one on the pizza. Add some more cheese on top, drizzle some oil on top and sprinkle pizza mix. Cover and cook, for 2 to 3 minutes till the base has become brown and crispy. Serve hot. 

Maggi Noodles with Veggies and Eggs...

Maggi Noodles with Veggies and Eggs... 

It is a all time favourite dish of many. My husband claims that he lived on Maggi during his collage days, my daughter can have Maggi any time of the day. For me it is quick and easy to cook. I have cooked it in a desi way with Veggies and Eggs and seasoned it with Madras Curry powder.. 

Ingredients 

4 pieces of Veg Maggi Noodles

4 Eggs

1/4 cup of each Vegetables chopped 

Carrot

Capsicum 

French beans 

Cauliflower or Broccoli 

Onion

Tomato

1 tsp Garlic chopped

1 tsp Green chillies chopped

2 tsp Curry powder

2 Maggi Masala sachets

Salt to taste 

1 tbsp Oil

1 tbsp Butter 

Few Coriander Leaves chopped for garnishing 

Method

Take a wok, add oil and butter. Let the butter melt. Add the garlic and chillies. Sauté it for a minute, add the onions. Sauté it till brown in colour. Add the vegetables one by one and stir it, add the curry powder, Maggi masala and salt. Stir it. Take Maggi, crush it and add it to the vegetables, stir it. Add 3 cup of water, stir it. Cover and cook, stirring in between  till it is done, and little water is left in the wok. Break the eggs on top, cover and cook till the eggs are done, switch off the flame and garnish it with coriander leaves.