Arachuvitta Sambar(Spicy Lentil Stew)

Sambar is one for the most famous dish of South India. Be it any southern state of India, Sambar is one of the most common preparation for any lunch time meal. This is a thick lentil stew with tomatoes, onions, curry leaves and any vegetable that fancies the person who cooks it. Sambar without lentils is called 'kuzhambu' in Tamilnadu. More on that in a separate post.

There are many varieties of sambar....its quite a long list. I don't want to overwhelm you with that.

This recipe does not require any 'Sambar Masala'. All the spices are roasted and freshly ground which gives a wonderful aroma. Just give it a try and you would never buy the commercially sold 'Sambar Masala Powder' !

Arachuvitta Sambar , boiling away!

 

Ingredients:

To Dry Roast and Grind-

Whole Coriander Seeds - 1 1/2 tsp
Dry Red Chilly - 2
Fenugreek/Vendayam - 1/2 tsp
Bengal Gram Dal/Kadalai Parupu - 1 tsp
Whole Peppercorns - 1/2 tsp
Jeera/Cumin Seeds- 1 tsp
Coconut (Fresh/desiccated)- 2 tsp

For the stew-

Toor Dal- 1 cup
Onion - 1
Tomato - 2
Hing/asafetida- 1/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder- 1 tsp
Tamarind Paste- 1/2 tsp
Cumin- 1 tsp
Oil- 4 tbsp
Ghee/Clarified Butter- 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Method:

1.Dry roast the ' to dry roast and grind ' ingredients and allow it to cool down.
2.Grind the same to a very fine powder in a mixer/grinder. Set aside.

3.Soak the toor dal for 2 hours. Pressure cook the toor dal, along with tomatoes(finely chopped),asafetida, and 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder upto four whistles. I have used carrot here, you can use any seasonal vegetable.

4.In a wok/kadai, heat 4 tbsp of oil, add 1 tsp of cumin and finely chopped onions.

5.Saute for five minutes on a medium flame.
6.Now add the cooked lentil along with the ground spice mix.
7.Add tamarind paste ,salt to taste and cook further for 10 minutes on a medium flame.

8.Finally add 1 tsp of clarified butter/ghee before removing from fire. Garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Goes well with hot white rice or idlies or dosas.

Once you make this, you will swear by this and would never waste a penny on the Sambar Masala.
 
 

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Pizza

Pizza..Pizza...Pizza....brings a smile on everyone's face. 

Pizza is a oven baked, flat round  bread from Italy typically topped with tomato sauce, cheese, olives and you name it, you can add as topping.

Some of the weird pizza toppings I have heard would be banana, chocolate, peanut butter, jelly and what not...

Rather that ordering for one, I attempted to make a pizza from scratch. 

Pizza

Ingredients:

For Pizza Base:
Maida/All purpose flour - 2 cups
Yeast - 1 tbsp
Sugar - 2 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Milk - 1/2 cup
Olive Oil - 4 tbsp

For the Pizza Sauce:
Ripe Tomatoes - 2 medium sized
Oregano - 1 tbsp
Chilly Flakes - 1 tsp
Olive Oil - 2 tbsp
Tomato ketchup - 4 tbsp
Cornflour(if required)-2 tsp
Salt to taste

Method:

Preparing the yeast:

1.Heat 5 tsp of water to lukewarm temperature. Dissolve the sugar  and add yeast. Mix and cover with a lid for 5 minutes, until it foams up.Yeast feeds on sugar.
*If the yeast has not foamed up, that means the yeast is dead and you need to start with a fresh pack.
*Another reason, might be the water was too hot to kill the yeast.
*Also, too much of salt kills the yeast.

Preparing the Pizza Base:

2.In a large bowl, combine the all purpose flour, salt, olive oil. After the yeast has been activated, mix along with the flour and make a soft dough using enough milk.
3.On a clean kitchen counter, place the dough, knead for 10 minutes using the heal of your hand.
4.Transfer the dough into the bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Rest it for 1 hour. This is known as the 'first rise'.
5.After 1 hour, the dough would have doubled in size.
6.Punch back the dough.
7.Transfer the dough into the bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Rest it for another one hour. This is the 'second rise'.
8.After this, the dough would have again doubled in size.
Preparing the Pizza Sauce:
9.Take 2 tbsp of olive oil in a wok/kadai,  add the chopped tomatoes, oregano, chilly flakes, and salt .Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
10.Remove from fire and allow it to cool. Puree in a mixer and cook again with tomato ketchup.
11.If the sauce is too watery, dissolve cornflour in few tablespoons of water and cook till the sauce thickens.

Assembling the pizza:
12.Divide the dough into four balls and with help of a rolling pin, roll up to 1/2 centimetre thickness.
13.Prick with fork and bake in a pre-heated oven for 10 minutes at 180 degrees centigrade.
14.Take the pizza base out of the oven and spread the pizza sauce.
15.Now you can spread whatever toppings you fancy, thinly sliced bell peppers. tomatoes, onion rings, sliced mushrooms, corn kernels, jalapenos, olives, chicken shredding and the list goes on and on...:-D
16.Finally top it with shredded mozzarella cheese and bake for 10 minutes at 180degrees centigrade.
17.After the baking process is over, using the GRILL mode, and further cook it for 10 minutes. This step is basically to melt the cheese.(Check your oven instruction manual regarding the placement of the tray while grilling. My oven requires the top shelf placement for grilling.)

Yummy pizza to dig in !!!

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Garlic Naan

Naan has been on my try-it list for quite some time.

Naan is a thick flatbread cooked in a tandoor, from which tandoori cooking takes its name. Some recipe use yeast and some use baking powder. Milk or Yogurt or a combination of both is also another main ingredient which imparts a  distinct taste.This is usually served hot, brushed with butter/ghee. 

There are different variations of a naan as like the plain naan, garlic naan and stuffed naan .Garlic Naan is a must order whenever we dine out and being my hubby's favorite, I tried this....



Garlic Naan

Ingredients:

Maida/All purpose Flour- 3 cups
Olive Oil - 3 tbsp
Salt - 3/4 tsp
Milk - 3/4 cup
Yogurt/Curds - 2 tsbp
Dry Yeast - 1 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1 1/2 tsp
Garlic(Finely chopped) - 10 pods
Sesame Seeds(Black/White) - 2 tsp

Method:

Preparing the yeast:
1.Heat 5 tsp of water to lukewarm temperature. Dissolve the sugar  and add yeast. Mix and cover with a lid for 5 minutes, until it foams up.Yeast feeds on sugar.

*If the yeast has not foamed up, that means the yeast is dead and you need to start with a fresh pack.
*Another reason, might be the water was too hot to kill the yeast.
*Also, too much of salt kills the yeast.

Preparing the Naan Dough:

2.In a large bowl, combine the all purpose flour, salt, yogurt, olive oil. After the yeast has been activated,mix along with the flour and make a soft dough using enough milk.
3.On a clean kitchen counter, place the dough, knead for 10 minutes using the heal of your hand.
4.Transfer the dough into the bowl and cover with a damp cloth.Rest it for 1 1/2 hour.This is known as the 'first rise'.
5.After 1 1/2 hours,the dough would have doubled in size.
6.Punch back the dough and add the finely chopped garlic.
7.Transfer the dough into the bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Rest it for 1 1/2 hour.This is the 'second rise'.
8.After 1 1/2 hours, the dough would again doubled in size.
9.Preheat oven for 10 minutes at 240 deg centrigrade.
10.Meanwhile, make equal sized balls of the dough. Flatten them into thick triangular sized as shown the in picture below.
11.Brush with butter and sprinkle sesame seeds and press them gently so that they don't fall after grilling them.
12.Using the Grill Mode, cook them in the oven for 8 to10 minutes. Check your oven instruction manual regarding the placement of the tray while grilling. My oven requires the top shelf placement for grilling. 



Garlic Naan

13.Serve hot with a spicy gravy of your choice.

Simply 'Laajawab' !!!

If you stop by,please do to leave a comment.

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Hummus

For quite a long time, I was wondering how to replace all the mayo and cheese spreads which we use at home with something healthy. Then, Hummus came to my mind.



Hummus is the Arabic word for chickpea/white kabuli channa. This is a part of the Egyptian cuisine, which my hubby introduced to me when we were in Paris, France. Many a times we have had Falafel with hummus for our lunch ,but never knew how to make it at home. Hummus is had Falafel along with a green vegetable salad  or with pita bread as an appetizer.

This also goes well with toasted bread and indeed a very healthy alternative to any store bought cheese spread.

Hummus




Ingredients:


Chickpeas/Channa(White)- 1 cup
Sesame Seeds(White)- 1/2 cup
Olive Oil- 1 cup
Garlic- 2 pods
Salt to taste



Method:



1.In a kadai/wok, saute the sesame seeds till they start to splutter.Remove from fire and allow it to cool down.
2. Soak the chickpeas overnight in water and pressure cook till tender.This would take 4 to 5 whistles.Allow it to cool down to room temperature.
3.In a mixer, first grind the sesame seeds tilll fine powder.Then include the cooked channa/chickpea,olive oil, garlic pods, and salt to taste.Grind till you reach a very fine consistancy.
4.Can be store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for a week.




Hummus, Vegetable Salad, Toasted Brown Bread

Best when had like this...

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Vege Pasta

A sure delight for all vegetarians, full of flavours to suit the Indian palate.I usually use the durum wheat pasta, as they say  has a low glycemic index values which is healthy.They come in different shapes, Fusilli are the long coiled ones, Penne are an inch long tubes diagonally cut at both ends, Elbows  are the slightly bent inch long tubes, Farfalle are the bow shaped ones,Rigatoni are an inch long tubes.

Ingredients:

Uncooked Pasta(Elbows)- 2 cups
Olive Oil - 4 tbsp
Oregano - 3 tbsp
Tomato Sauce - 1/4 cup
Onion - 1 big
Tomato - 2 medium sized
Carrot- 1 cup
Capsicum-1 cup
Mushrooms- 1/2 cup
French beans - 1 cup
Black Olives- 10 (sliced pitted olives)
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Take a 1 litre of water and wait for the water to start boiling vigorously.Now add the uncooked pasta with 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of oil.Oil is added so that the pasta does not stick while cooking.
2. After 10 minutes, drain the water and run cold water thru the pasta to stop them from cooking further and set aside.
3. Cut the onions and tomatoes lengthwise.Cut all the vegetables into half inch pieces,length wise.
4. In a wok or a non stick pan, heat 4 tbsp of olive oil and add the sliced onions and tomatoes.
5. Saute for 2 minutes and add 3 tbsp of oregano ,cook further for 2 more minutes.
6. Now add all the chopped vegetables and 1/4 cup of tomato sauce.
7. Cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes till all the vegetables are just done.
8. Once the vegetables are done, add the cooked pasta and toss for few minutes till all the ingredients are combined.
9. Season with salt and add the olives at the end.
10. Drizzle with olive oil before your serve.

Delizioso !!!
 

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