Masala Dosa | Masale Dose | How to make masala dosa?

Most loved breakfast ever, soft yet crisp masala dosas
08/30/2016 9:38:23 PM vindhyadesai

Dosa/Dose is a very popular dish from South India eaten for breakfast. But these days, dosa has become an universal dish. It is famous all over the world and not just in India. They are thin and crepe like, made from rice and urad dal(black gram dal) batter.  See my dosa batter recipe to make dosas. This is a crowd puller dish and is one of the most prepared dishes in weddings and other parties along with bisi bele bhaat. You will definitely see a crowd around a dosa counter wherever it is, in parties, in dosa camps, in hotels, in street dosa vans which sell “99”, “100” and many more varieties of dosas. With the same batter you can make different variety of dosas. Masala dosa has potato (aloo) masala palya filling with red chutney (kempu chutney) smeared just before adding the masala. Red chutney is substituted with green mint/pudina chutney sometimes. Serve dosa with coconut chutney or any other chutneys or side dishes you like. ... “Masala Dosa | Masale Dose | How to make masala dosa?”

Dosa Batter | How to make dosa batter? | Dose Hittu

Homemade dosa batter for hotel style dosas
08/28/2016 9:33:47 PM vindhyadesai

The secret to make crisp yet soft dosas without using a lot of oil is in the batter. Dosa batter should be fermented to the right consistency for good, tasty dosas. Different people make dosa batter in different ways, few add cooked rice, few add puffed rice and few add rice flakes (poha). I use poha which makes the dosas light and fenugreek (methi) seeds for fermentation and colour. There are few more secret ingredients revealed in below recipe. Look out for the notes mentioned in the recipe for important pointers. ... “Dosa Batter | How to make dosa batter? | Dose Hittu”

Saarina Pudi | Fresh homemade rasam powder | How to make saarina pudi?

Aromatic, spicy Udupi style homemade saarina pudi/rasam powder
08/27/2016 4:48:16 PM vindhyadesai

Do you buy rasam powder or any masala from a store, try making it at home. There will certainly be a difference in the way you cook at home and it tastes very fresh, aromatic and will be of course free of preservatives. A simple saaru/rasam can be very satisfying and what better if you have fresh masala to make piping hot saaru/rasam/charu at home. Here is the recipe to make fresh rasam/saaru powder at home. For the proportions mentioned here you can make saaru/rasam powder that will be sufficient to make saaru/rasam at least 12 times which serves 4 people, so it lasts for a long time. You can even double the quantities and make more powder. Rasam powder can be used for a variety of other dishes like huLi avalakki and many more. ... “Saarina Pudi | Fresh homemade rasam powder | How to make saarina pudi?”

Avalakki Chivda | Poha Chivda | How to make chivda?

Crisp spicy tea-time snack, avalakki/poha chivda
08/26/2016 9:30:34 PM vindhyadesai

Want to have something at home to munch on without worrying about calories, then chivda is your snack. Yes, it is not completely guilt-free but it is better than deep fried or sweet snacks on a daily basis. Come tea-time we all feel like eating something with our favourite beverage, chivda sounds definitely mouth-watering. This is a very famous snack from North Karnataka and Maharashtra. Nowadays, it is famous all over. Different things can be added to chivda like mixture, sev, ghatte, broken onion pakoda, roasted dry nuts etc. But the base for making avalakki/poha chivda is the same. Use medium poha/rice flakes for making chivda it gives a nice crispiness and crunch. Enjoy with your favourite cup of tea/coffee or serve with yogurt/curd (super combo!) or madike usli/matki usal (again a super combo!). It is also a preferred snack during fasting or when guests pop-over, all in all it is a versatile snack. ... “Avalakki Chivda | Poha Chivda | How to make chivda?”

Shenga chikki | Kadalebeeja chikki | Peanut brittle | Groundnut chikki

Bakery style homemade chikki – to satisfy the sweet tooth
08/25/2016 10:15:47 PM vindhyadesai

A sudden craving for a sweet! How about something sweet which also exercises the teeth! Homemade chikki, ‘brittle’ as it is called in western desserts. Wishing everyone a happy Sri Krishna Janmashtami. I wanted to post all recipes a few days before the festival but because of an unscheduled maintenance on the website I had to move them to post today. Chikki is made with roasted peanuts, pistachios or almonds (badam) or any kind of hard dry nuts. It is made by caramelizing sugar or jaggery and the roasted nuts are quickly stirred in and left to cool and then broken into chikkis or brittles. Childhood favourite for many, one could buy these for a small amount and savour them while returning from school. Try other favourite bakery style items at home. ... “Shenga chikki | Kadalebeeja chikki | Peanut brittle | Groundnut chikki”

Veg Hakka Noodles | How to make veg hakka noodles?

Hot and spicy, loaded with vegetables, veg hakka noodles
08/24/2016 8:30:27 PM vindhyadesai

Love eating Chinese food? There are usually very few restaurants which make quality Chinese food. They generally add artificial colours and MSG (mono-sodium glutamate) which should not be consumed. Making Chinese food at home is not difficult at all. Just use a heavy pan or wok when making Chinese food as everything is cooked at high temperature, quickly tossed and served hot. This is Dish 8 of the World Cuisine series, veg hakka noodles, the Indo-Chinese way. Loads of vegetables makes this dish quite fibrous and healthy. You do not need to use a lot of oil at all, just get the balance of flavours right! ... “Veg Hakka Noodles | How to make veg hakka noodles?”

Mac n Cheese

Creamy rich, kids favourite mac n cheese
08/21/2016 4:54:27 PM vindhyadesai

Every kid loves mac n cheese, it is creamy, tasty and it has oodles of cheese. It starts with a basic white sauce or bechamel sauce. Cooked macaroni, a type of pasta is added to it and finished with cheese and is baked in the oven till the cheese melts. Different kinds of flavours are added to this. This is Dish 7 of the World Cuisine Series and this is from America (ori. English as per wiki) but extremely popular in American and Canadian region. Enjoy with a slice of plain garlic bread. Make the dish creamy and not dry. Macaroni is made using tube or elbow macaroni pasta generally but any kind of small pasta which holds the sauce well can also be used. Here I have used small shell pasta. ... “Mac n Cheese”

Apple Strudel – An Austrian speciality dessert

Flaky and crispy layers with juicy apples served with a homemade custard
08/20/2016 4:22:11 PM vindhyadesai

Thin puff pastry layers with crunch of sugar and juicy fragrant apples baked inside, served with custard and vanilla ice cream, sounds like a great combination for an indulgent dessert. This dessert is a speciality dish from Austria very famously made in one of its cities, Vienna. So here is Dish 6 from the World Cuisine Series from Austria. It is a pastry based dessert made with apples, puff pastry and other dry nuts. Strudel apparently is a word from German language. Traditionally, homemade strudel is a rolled pastry with fillings inside. The first time I tried it, I made it in the traditional way (few photos included from v1). The next time I tried it I made it into a cross between a French apple galette and an Austrian apple strudel, looks exotic and is super scrumptious. This is a very decadent dessert, go easy on the portions but enjoy it once in a while. ... “Apple Strudel – An Austrian speciality dessert”

Baked Gem Squash | Roasted Gem Squash – South African style roasted squash

Sweet roasted gem squash with creamy corn filling – A South African vegetarian delicacy
08/18/2016 9:56:16 PM vindhyadesai

Another recipe, Dish 5 of World Cuisine Series and this time it is from the beautiful country of South Africa. Like I mentioned in the 1st post of world cuisine series, it is always best to eat and source vegetables that are available locally in season. For this recipe use any kind of small squash/pumpkin. The sweet flesh of a squash is very fibrous and is very tasty. It just melts in the mouth when baked/roasted. It is used differently in different types of cuisines. I have adapted this recipe from this blog. There are so many resources out there to learn about new cuisines and new dishes. Make this with any type of squash you can get your hands on and enjoy the flavours. It is gluten free and it can be made vegan by adding a vegan cheese or even skipping it, just roasted will be just as nice! Here I have used gem squash which is a green skinned, yellow fleshed squash(picture below) and is ideal to share for two. Eat the pulp/flesh of the squash and discard the hard/tough skin of the squash ... “Baked Gem Squash | Roasted Gem Squash – South African style roasted squash”

Spinach Corn Cheddar Cheese Muffins | Mexican Savoury Muffins

Packed with a punch of jalapenos, with cheese, corn and spinach – Mexican style muffins
08/17/2016 9:53:27 PM vindhyadesai

I have a soft spot for anything savoury 🙂 Whenever I get an opportunity, I try to make savoury things to nibble on. This is Dish 4 of the World Cuisine Series and it is from Mexico. One of my favourite cuisines to prepare and of course to eat (gobble ’em all up). These are muffins with Mexican flavours, corn, jalapenos, cheese, what is not to like about them. Whenever I bake anything I try to make them all with whole wheat. Along with whole wheat flour, I have also used yellow cornmeal which is maize flour, easily available in stores/supermarkets. It gives a nice texture to the muffins, you also get to incorporate another grain and cornmeal is widely used in Mexican cuisine! The most important thing about muffins is not to overmix the batter/mixture which will make them chewy and hard. Mix and make muffins, enjoy them as a snack or for a quick nibble with a glass of milk in the morning. Also try other Mexican recipes! ... “Spinach Corn Cheddar Cheese Muffins | Mexican Savoury Muffins”