Simple and Delicious !

Canned mushrooms are tasteless, according to my DH.. He has much sweet childhood memories of tasty mushroom thoran or roast , prepared by plucking fresh mushrooms from the land around home. You might have heard from other bloggers before, during child hood, you spent your long holidays in your Grandma's house (mostly mother's side) and in a morning, after a night's thunder and lighting , you went out with Grandma to pick newly sprouted mushrooms... :) Grandmas say koon / mushroom sprouts once after it thunders..! I haven't seen any body cooked mushrooms in my home and often said to us children, don't pluck it, it is poisonous! But after marriage, I happened to eat mushroom thoran from S's family and after that I started searching for mushroom recipes and did much experiments... Since S didn't like the "watery-tasted" mushrooms, I always tried to cover it with lots of masalas.. :) And this one is such a dish, spicy roasted mushrooms...



Ingredients used
Mushrooms cut into 4 pieces 1 1/2 cups
shallots 5
garlic cloves 2 big size
ginger piece 1/2 " size
pepper powder 3 tsp
chilli powder 1/2 or 1 tsp
fennel seeds powder 2 pinches
turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
garam masala 1/2 tsp
tomato 1/2
curry leaves few
coriander leaves chopped few
green chillies as desired
oil 1 Tbsp
mustard seeds
salt



How I prepared
Grind together, shallots, garlic and ginger. Mix this paste with turmeric powder, chilli and pepper powder, fennnel seeds powder, 1/4 tsp garam masla and salt.
Add mushrooms into this and marinate well.
Heat little oil in a pan. Let mustard seeds splutter.Add mushrooms. After few seconds turn over them.
Later stir them for a while. Crush the tomato pieces with salt and add it to this.Mix and cook covered on a low flame.
After 2 minutes open the lid and mix well by stirring continuously. Add curry leaves and green chillies as per taste and stir..
Let the masala cover mushrooms completely and the water absorb.
Sprinkle remaining garam masala over it and garnish with coriander leaves. You can use juice of half lime instead of tomato.
You can see other mushroom recipes here.

I am going to take rest. It is very much needed now, don't know when it is possible to visit you all. I have few recipes in draft. If my mom allows me, I will post them when I get time..
Like all moms she might say, it is the computer that makes all your problems..don't sit much in front of it... :)
A lovely reader of mine , Dhanya had asked the recipe for Navaratna kurma(I hope you will love this). Actually I don't know what is meant by this "nava rathna" or "nine gems" here. Some says it is nine ingredients or nine kinds of vegetables used for cooking.
Whatever it may be, we all loved this kurma very much.
My brother is a born vegetarian and he started cooking to survive among his carnivore friends.I heard he cooks kurumas very well, instead of using coconut he used much cashews to thicken the gravy. Once I tasted his chana preparation, which was really tasty, I took 3/4 of the dish even without a piece of roti.. :) I think he too got my mom's "kaippunyam"...



Ingredients
Potato 1
carrot 1
cauliflower florets 1 cup
green peas cooked 1 cup
onion 1
tomato 1
turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
coriander powder 2 tsp
chilli powder 1/2 tsp
coriander leaves
salt
oil

Grind to a paste,
garlic cloves 5 small
ginger 1 " pieces
green chilly 1 or 2

Blend together,
coconut grated 1 cup
cashew nuts 6
black pepper corns 1/2 tsp
cardomam 2
cloves 2
cinnamon 1 " piece
cumin seeds 1/4 tsp



How to prepare,
Cook all the vegetables and keep aside.(Use vegetables you like).
Heat oil in a pan. Saute chopped onions as usual until transparent.
Saute chopped tomatoes and ground paste for few seconds until the raw smell disappears.
Add powders, cooked vegetables, peas, coriander leaves and stir well for few seconds. Add blended paste and enough salt.
Cook it on a low flame until oil floats on top.
You can use lime juice or curd instead of tomato.
Add ghee roasted paneer cubes and cashews and raisins to the dish. Some adds cream too.
You can make navrathna kurma with fruits like apple and pineapple etc. I don't have the recipe for that and haven't tried it yet. So please any one tried it let me know how it tastes.. :)

What do you have for break fast or dinner? Bread? Chapathi? Puri or Appams? This goes well with all..



Ingredients
Cauliflower florets 2 1/2 cups
onions 2
tomato 1
coriander powder 2 tsp
chilli powder 1/2 or 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
coriander leaves chopped few
salt
oil

Grind together to a paste,
garlic cloves 4
ginger 1 " piece
green chilly 1
black pepper corns 1 tsp
fennel seeds 1/4 tsp
cardomam 1
cinnamon stick 1 " piece
cloves 2

Blend together to a smooth paste,
coconut grated 1/2 cup
cashew nuts 3
water enough



How to prepare
Boil water, put cauliflower florets in it for few minutes.
Chop onion and tomato. Heat oil saute onion first, then add the ground paste, saute until the raw smell goes.
Add all the powders and stir. Mash tomato pieces with hand and add it. Add salt and cauliflower florets. Mix well. Add 1/2 cup water and cook the florets well in this. Stir occasionally.
When the cauliflower is cooked, add the blended paste of coconut and cashewnuts. Mix well and let it boil on a low flame. When the oil floats on top, remove from fire, garnish with coriander leaves. Keep this for 1 hour before you serve, it will become thick.

See the Cauliflower varutharacha curry, I posted before one year...In the early days of blogging...

Ingredients
Potatoes 3 medium size
onions 3
tomatoes 2
green chillies 2
coriander leaves chopped 1 tbsp
curry leaves few
pepper powder 2 tsp
turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
mustard seeds few
water 1/2 cup hot
salt
oil

grind to paste,
garlic cloves 3 big size
ginger piece 1 inch size
fennel seeds 1/4 tsp
pepper corns 2 tsp
cloves 2
cardamom 1
cinnamon 2 small sticks



Method
Boil , peel and cut the potatoes into pieces.
Heat oil in a pan,let mustard seeds splutter. Saute chopped onion until slightly brown. Then saute the ground paste till the raw smell goes.
Add chopped tomatoes and all the powders with salt.Add hot water and cook until the tomatoes are mashed well. Add potato pieces,coriander, curry leaves and green chillies.Mix well and heat it by keeping the lid closed for a while on a low flame.
Take this curry soon when it is hot with chapathi or puri!

Sent to Sia's "Ode to potato" Event..And Divya Karthik's "Potato Feast"..!

Ingredients and method of preparation
Chana / vellakkadala 2 cups
onion 2 chopped
tomato 2 chopped
garlic and ginger paste 2 tea spoons
green chillies 2 chopped
cumin seeds 1/4 teaspoon
turmeric powder 1 teaspoon
pepper powder OR
chilly powder 2 tea spoons
coriander powder 2 teaspoons
garam masala 1/2 tea spoon
coriander leaves few chopped
curry leaves few
salt and oil
mustard seeds

Cook chana with salt and enough water until soft.

Heat oil, splutter cumin seeds and mustard seeds. Saute onions till golden.Stir for a while after adding garlic ginger paste. Then add chopped tomatoes, green chillies, curry leaves and coriander leaves.Let the tomatoes cooked and add little salt. Add all powders. Make a thick masala and mix the cooked chana with this.Add a little of the remaining water used for cooking chick peas in this.Let it boil on a low flame.

You can prepare this by adding thick coconut milk like green peas curry here.

Puri
wheat powder 2 cups
water 3/4 cup or enough to make dough
oil little
salt

Mix them together and make a dough. Make small balls and prepare circles using a chappathi press or roll on a wooden board. Deep fry them. If you do not know how to make puri, check the links here.



Mixed vegetable curry
carrot 1 chopped
cauliflower florets 1/2 cup
cooked green peas 1 cup
beans chopped 1/2 cup
potato 1 chopped
green chilly 2 chopped
onion 1 chopped
tomato 1 chopped
garlic and ginger paste 2 tea spoons
garam masala 1/2 tea spoon
Meat masala powder(I use Eastern) 2 teaspoons
turmeric powder 1/2 tea spoon
red chilly powder or pepper powder 1 tea spoon
coriander powder 2 tea spoons
curry leaves few
coriander leaves chopped few
cumin seeds 1 pinch
mustard seeds
oil
salt

Cook all the vegetables with enough water, turmeric powder and salt.

Heat oil, splutter mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Saute onion. When transparent, add ginger garlic paste and saute for few moments. Add tomato,all the powders and salt. Then add curry leaves, coriander leaves and all the cooked vegetables. Sprinkle garam masala and meat masala and mix well. Cook on a low flame until the curry gets enough thickness.

Ingredients
Cauliflower 1 medium size
onion 1
ginger 1/2 inch piece julienned
green chillies 2 slit
pepper powder 2 tea spoons
garam masala 2 pinches
tomato sauce 2 table spoons
soya sauce 2 1/2 table spoons
chilli sauce 2 tea spoons
garlic and ginger paste 2 teaspoons
coriander leaves few chopped
egg 1 optional
cornflour 1/4 cup
salt

How to prepare
Remove cauliflower florets and soak them in boiled water for ten minutes. Mix cornflour,egg, garlic ginger paste, 2 table spoon soya sauce, chilly sauce, pepper powder, salt and garam masla in a bowl. Add little water to make a thick batter. Put the cauliflower florets in this and mix very well. Keep this for half an hour. Deep fry them.
Chop onion as big pieces. Take little oil from the remaining oil that we used for frying cauliflower. Heat oil, saute onion for few seconds. Don't saute too much as we do for curries. then saute ginger and green chillies, for few seconds too. Add fried cauliflower, tomato sauce and remaining soya sauce into this. Stir very well. Check salt. Garnish with coriander leaves.You can add capsicum and spring onions too.

Ingredients for making appam
Raw rice / White rice – 2 cup
Cooked matta rice ½ cup
Coconut grated 3/4 cup
Yeast ½ tea spoon
Sugar 1 tea spoon
water
Salt

Method of Preparation
Soak raw rice for 3 or 4 hours. Wash and grind with all other ingredients. Keep the batter to be fermented for about 12 hours. Keep the non stick pan on a medium flame. Pour two ladle full of batter (if needed wipe pan with a tissue dipped in oil) into it. Rotate the pan in a circular manner. You can see holes appearing on the appams. After that, cover with lid. The appam batter should not be watery or too thick. I don’t claim it should be okay for every one who give a try. It depends on how much the appam batter is fermented. We can say the success of appam making, viewing the batter it self. For making flower appams, let the batter go forward then back ward, again right and opposite to that, then left and bring back opposite to that. It is easy if you try. Appam is also known as Paalappam or Vellappam.

We wouldn’t use yeast at home in Kerala, mostly we add one tablespoon of uzhunnu/black gram dal. It doesn’t work here in winter season, so I began to use yeast. During winter season, the fermenting of the batters like Idli, Dosa and Vellappam is not easy. So keep the batter inside the microwave oven, after you finished heating any food. It will help.

For making appams and Duck roast you can follow this recipe from Secret of Taste




Potato Stew

Ingredients
Potato 2
Onion 1 chopped
Tomato 1 small chopped
Ginger ½ inch chopped
Turmeric powder ½ tea spoon optional
Green chillies as desired
Coconut milk thick 1 cup
Pepper powder 1 tea spoon
Curry leaves few
Mustard seeds
Salt
Oil

How to prepare
Boil potatoes and peel.
Cut into small pieces.
Heat oil.
Splutter mustard seeds.
Sauté onion.
When it is transparent, sauté ginger and green chillies in it till the aroma of ginger comes.
Add turmeric, potato and tomato pieces, pepper powder, curry leaves and salt.
Stir it for few minutes.
Pour coconut milk into this.
Add little water if you want to reduce the thickness.
When it begins to boil, remove from fire.
Best with Appam and Chappathi

I just add the appam recipe with the amount of water to help some readers here who asked me.This time I have made little changes, hope it may help you.

Appam
raw rice 1 cup
coconut grated 1/2 cup
yeast 1/4 or 1/2 tsp
warm water 1 cup(25% hotwater )-about 200 ml
cooked rice / choru 1/2 cup
sugar 1 tsp
salt

Grind everything together. Ferment for 12 hours.I kept the batter inside the oven to ferment in a plastic container.

Ingredients
Mushroom 400 g
Turmeric powder ¼ tea spoon
Chilly powder one tea spoon
Coriander powder two teaspoon
Grated coconut half cup
Onion one medium
Tomato one medium
Green chilly one or two
Garlic and ginger paste one tea spoon each optional
Curry leaves and coriander leaves few
Mustard seeds one tea spoon
Oil one table spoon
Garam masala one tea spoon
Salt

How to prepare
Fry coconut till brown using little coconut oil.
Blend this with little water and two cashew nuts.
Heat oil.
Let the mustard seeds splutter.
Add chopped onions.
Sauté till transparent.
Add all powders, salt and chopped mushrooms.
Mix very well till the whole powders cover the mushrooms.
Then add chopped tomatoes, green chillies, curry leaves and stir.
Pour blended coconut solution into this.
Boil.
Sprinkle little garam masala and chopped coriander leaves over this.

This curry goes well with chapathi,puttu,dosa, porotta etc.
Ingredients
Green peas - 1 cup(cooked or one tin)
Garlic-ginger paste - 1 tsp
Onion - 1 no Tomato - 1 no
Curry leaves - A few
Coriander leaves - A few
Green chillies - 2 nos
Chilly powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Garam masala powder - 1/4 tsp
Thick coconut milk - 1 cup
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Salt - As reqd
Oil

Method

INGREDIENTS
Red gram(Thuvaraparippu/Sambar parippu) - 1 cup

Small onion(Kunjulli) - 10 nos

Tomato(small) - 1 no

Curry leaves - A few

Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Coconut oil - As reqd

Green chillies - 2 nos

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Salt - As reqd


METHOD
1)Soak dal in water.
2)Cook dal along with chopped tomato, salt, 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder and green chillies.
3)Heat oil in another pan.
4)Splutter mustard seeds.
5)Add curry leaves, broken red chilly and stir fry crushed small onions.
6)Pour this mixture into dal.:- Serve with chappathis, ghee rice.