Sep 24, 2010

Dry chutney for idli

I must thank my colleague Mrs Kumar for teaching me South Indian recipes. She used to bring yummy soft idlis coated with dry chutney in tiffin and we all used to love them. Infact all of us waited for her to get these idlis. Here is the recipe of Dry Chutney.
I keep it all the time on dining table, and it adds taste to our snacks like sewai upma, upma, poha and other snacks with this chutney. I am a big time chutney, pickle fan so have many type of pickles and chutneys in my kitchen.



Things you need: 
Dhuli Urad dal: 1 cup
Chana dal(gram pulse): 1 cup
Peanuts: 1/2 cup
Til (sesame) seeds: 2 tb spn
Dry red chilies: 10-12 (can take more for making it more spicy)
salt: as per taste

Preparation:
Roast urad dal, chana dal and peanuts on slow flame in a thick bottom pan till light brown. Add til seeds and red chillies and roast further, till til seeds swell and urad/chana dals turn medium brown. Allow it to cool.
After cooling grind it in mixer. Add salt to taste. You can store this chutney for a month.

Serving:
Heat 3 tbspn ghee/oil  in a pan, add a pinch of asofoetida and 3 tbspn chutney. Wrap fresh hot idlis in this chutney and keep it for 5-10 mins for soaking. Serve them.
This is very good for carrying in tiffins/picnic/travel and works just like sandwiches.

Low Cal Dal Makhni


Hi,
I am resuming activity on my blog after  a long gap.. was preoccupied mostly with travel and work.. else wise I was busy trying new designs in crochet...today I am posting recipe of Dal Makhni, which comes from North India and Punjab, in particular. Though like any other Punjabi delicacy, Dal Makhni is also very rich in butter and spices, I am putting down an adaptation for low cal lovers..I made it in the evening today and my family enjoyed it..

Things required: (serves five)
Black Urad dal: 1 cup
Rajma (red kidney beans): 1/4 cup
Onion: 1 cup chopped
Ginger: 1 " piece
Garlic: 7-8 flakes
tomato (mid sized): 2 nos (puree)
dal makhni masala: 1 1/2 tspn
amchoor (raw mango powder): 1/2 tspn
red chili powder: 1/2 tspn
tomato sauce: 2 tbspn
malai/ creme (optional): 2 tbspn
milk: 3/4 cup
salt as per taste
butter: 25 gms (can take more for garnishing)


What next:
Soak Dal and Rajma for 6-8 hours.
Pressure cook dal and rajma with onion, garlic and ginger in 4 cup water. Take 5 whistles on high flame and cook it in low flame for about 20 mins to cook the dal and rajma properly. Let it cool for 10 mins before opening.
Open the cooker and put in on low flame. Add tomato puree, and cook for 10 mins.  Add garam masala, amchoor, red chili powder, salt and cook further for 5 mins. Add milk and creme and cook further for 5-10 mins till desired consistency of dal.
Tempering:
Heat 25 gms of low cholestrol butter in a pan and add cumin seeds and cook till brown. Put the tempering on dal, mix well and serve hot. You may like to top it up with chopped coriander, creme and butter for garnishing.
Serve it with naan/chapati and rice.