Modak

Modak is sweet coconut dumpling prepared during the ganesh chaturthi festival.This is the most favourite dish of lord ganesh so this is prepared as naivaidya during ganesh chaturthi festival.


I am posting the fried version of the modak.
Ingredients:
Coating:
1 cup maida 
oil 


Stuffing
1cup grated coconut 
1 cup jaggery
1 spn cardamom powder


Procedure:
Mix maida ,water and oil into stiff dough .Keep it aside for 30 mins.
Heat grated coconut,jaggery in a pan,until the jaggery melts and forms a mixture with the coconut .Take it out from heat and then add cardamom powder.Take small balls of the dough and roll it into small puris .Then add the stuffing in it and give it a modak shape and then deep fry in oil.

Vada Pav

Ingredients:
1. Vada Stuffing:
1 Cup of boiled and mashed potatoes
Cumin seeds-1 spn
Greenchilles -2
Cilantro -2 sprigs
Tumeric powder
Salt

Procedure
Add cuminseeds,a pinch of tumeric powder ,finely chopped greenchillies ,cilantro and salt to the boiled potatoes and make it into golf size balls .

2. Vada Coating Mixture: 
1 cup of chickpeas flour
2 tbspn  rice flour
2 tbspn chillypowder
Pinch of asafoteida(hing)
Salt .

Procedure:
Mix all the above the ingredients with water into a smooth paste without any lumps.(chickpea batter generally tends to have lumps when added water to it.To avoid this mix all the dry ingredients first into smooth powder and then add water and mix it into a smooth paste).
   
3.Vada Preparation:
Heat oil in a pan .Make golf size balls from the above mixture .Dip into the coating mixture and deep fry in the hot oil .Then serve it sandwiched between two breads.

Cabbage Kosumbari (Cabbage Salad)

Ingredients
1 Cup Chopped Cabbage
1Cup Chopped Onions
3 tbspn Roasted Peanut Powder
2 tbspn Cumin seeds
2-3 Finely Chopped greenchillies
Salt

Procedure
- Mix chopped cabbage, onions, salt and finely chopped green chillies together.
- Add a little Ghee (1-2 tblspoon) in a pan and add some cumin seeds to it.
- Once the cumin seeds start spluttering add it to the above mixture.
- Finally add roasted peanut powder and mix everything together.

Aloo Palak (Potato Spinach Gravy)

Ingredients
1-2 Cardamom
1-2 Cloves
1 Cinnamon
1-2 Green Chillies
1-2 Garlic Grated
1/2 tbspn Ginger Paste
1 cup Chopped Onions
1 Tomato chopped
1tbspn Chilly powder
1 tbspn Cumin powder
1tbspn  Tumeric Powder
1 boiled potato
1tbspn Cream
Salt

Procedure
- Boil the Spinach for sometime and then allow it to cool
- Blend this with garlic in a blender (Adding garlic when blending spinach in the blender enhances the taste My innovation :-))
- Heat pan and add some oil to it.
- When the oil is properly heated, add cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon.When the mixture starts spluttering add onion, garlic, ginger and fry it for sometime.
- Then add tomatoes and fry until they turn mushy
-  Then add all the above powders and fry for sometime.
- Finally add the spinach puree and potatoes (pre-boiled) and bring it to a boil. Add salt to taste. Serve hot with rotis......

Pound Cake

My mom used to bake cakes for our birthdays during our childhood.From then i was very interested in baking cakes ,So finally i decided to bake this cake on a very chilly CHRISTMAS DAY .

Ingredients
2&1/2 cups of sugar
2 cup butter
2&1/2 Maida (All purpose flour)
2spn Vanilla Essence
1 spn Baking Powder
8 Eggs

Procedure
Preheat the oven at 350 F for 10 mins
Sieve the Maida and keep aside
Mix Sugar and butter into fine paste and then add one egg at a time and mix it.Add Vanilla Essence and mix.
Then 1 spoon Maida at a time and mix continously until no lumps are seen .
Grease the baking tray and pour the dough into it and bake it for around 45 minutes .

Bhindi Do Pyasa

Ingredients
Oil
Ladysfinger Chopped-1cup
Chopped Onion -1cup
Mustard seeds-1tspn
Cumin seeds-1tspn
Chillypowder-1tspn
Tamarind Paste
Curry leaves
Coriander Leaves

Procedure:
Heat Oil in a pan , add mustard ,cumin seeds,curryleaves when they start spulterring add onions and fry for sometime until they turn brownish.Add tamarind paste and fry for sometime ,then add chillypowder and fry for sometime .lastly add chopped ladysfinger and cook on lowflame until it is done .Garnish with coriander.Serve Hot with Rice and Dal

Okra sidedish(Bhende Doddak)

This is a speciality of my grandma who prepares very tasty doddak.This same dish can be prepared by adding fish (mackeral),mushrooms.

Ingredients

1 cup chopped ladysfinger

1 cup grated coconut

5-6 Redchillies

Tamarind extract

4-5 Teppal(Sichuan pepper)(optional)

2-3 Tumeric leaves(optional)

Salt

Procedure

Grind grated coconut,redchillies and tamarind into a fine paste.Add salt and the ground masala and crushed sichuan pepper (Teppal)to the ladysfinger.In a heavybottomed pan ,add little oil then add the masala in it.

Spread the Tumeric leaves over it and keep on low flame.This dish can be made without adding teppal and tumeric leaves.Serve hot with dal and rice

Dal (Dalitoy)

Ingredients
1 cup toordal
2-3 redchillies
2 greenchillies
4-5 curryleaves
A pinch of asafoetida (hing)
1tbspn ghee
coriander leaves

Procedure
Cook toordal in pressure cooker for 2-3 whistles.Add greenchillies to the cooked dal and bring it to a boil .Heat ghee or oil.Add mustardseeds,when they start popping add asafoetida,curryleaves,redchillies.Then add this to the cooked dal.Serve hot with rice.

Buns

Ingredients
3 ripe bananas
3tbspn yogurt
2tbspn sugar
2 cups maida
2tbspn butter
A pinch of soda
salt
oil

Procedure
Buns:
Smash the bananas into a fine paste.Then add sugar,salt,soda,butter,yogurt and mix well.Then add maida to make dough.The amount of maida can be varied to make a dough.Cover and keep it overnite.Heat oil.Make small balls of the dough and roll it into small puris and deep fry.Serve hot with coconut chutney.

Chutney:
Ingredients:
1 cup grated coconut
2-3 redchillies
Tamarind Extract
4-5 curryleaves
1 tbspn mustard seeds
Salt.

Procedure:
Grind coconut,redchillies and tamarind into a fine paste.Heat oil add mustardseeds,when they start popping add curryleaves ,redchillies and add it to the ground masala.Add salt .

Methi Paratha

Ingredients
1 cup wheat flour
1cup chopped methi leaves
Few coriander leaves
1tbspn chilly powder
1 tbspn tumeric powder
2-3 greenchillies
2-1tbspn sugar
Salt

Procedure
 Wash the methi leaves ,add salt and keep for some time.Then squeeze the water from methi leaves .Then add chilly powder ,tumeric powder,coriander leaves,greenchilles ,sugar ,salt to make a dough.Apply oil and leave it for sometime .Make parathas.

Ridgegourd Skin chutney(ghosale shire chutney)

Ingredients

I cup grated coconut

2 redchillies

2 greenchillies

1 cup ridgegourd skin

1/2tbspn mustard seeds

1/2 tbspn jeera seeds

A pinch of asafoetida (Hing)

5-6 curry leaves

Salt

Procedure

Peel the skin of the ridgegourd and keep aside .Heat the pan add the grated coconut and fry until it turns slightly brownish and gives that aroma .Take off the heat and allow it to cool.

In the same add 1 tbspn of oil add mustard seeds, jeera, when they start popping add redchillies ,curryleaves , greenchillies and fry for sometime and then later the ridgegourd skin and then 1 cup of water and bring it to a boil .After water evaporates ,then take off the heat .Allow it to cool and then grind it along with grated coconut into a course mixture without adding much water.Serve it dal and rice.

Ridgegourd Sidedish (Gosale Upkari)

Ingredients
2 Ridgegourd
2-3 green chillies
2 tbspn grated coconut
1 tbspn mustard seeds
Salt
Sugar

Procedure:
Heat oil in a pan ,add mustard seeds when they start popping add chopped ridgegourd ,greenchillies,grated coconut,salt ,sugar(if needed) and pressure cook it without adding whistle.Serve it as sidedish with dal and rice.
Note:Do not add whistle since its smashed.

Alvatti (Colocasia leaves curry) A Konkani Delicacy

Ingredients
1 cup chopped colocasia leaves
3-4 red chillies
Tamarind
1 tspn coriander seeds
1/2 tspn methi seeds
Corn seeds or babycorn
salt

Procedure
Boil the colocasia leaves and babycorn in the pressure cooker without adding whistle.Heat oil in a pan and fry redchillies,corianderseeds and methiseeds and grind it into a smooth paste.Add the masala to cooked leaves and bring it to a boil.Heat oil add mustardseeds,hing,redchillies and add them to the masala.Alvatti is ready for use either with rice or rotis

Brown Cow Peas Curry(Kirale Bagade ambat)

Here is the procedure for getting the peas ready for the dish.

Soak the peas in water .Next day drain the water and tie the peas in cloth and keep it overnite ,next day you can see the sprouts started coming. Take a bowl with the sprouts and remove the skin slowly without breaking the sprouts.In this there will be some peas which would not have sprouted discard them.
At the end there will be two heaps one is the bagado,which is ready to use.

The second is the skin of bagado,discard them.


Ingredients
1 Cup bagado
3-4 redchillies
Tamarind
1 cup grated coconut
5-10 cashews
1 cup chopped onions

Procedure:
Cook the bagado in the pressure without adding the whistle.By adding the whistle the peas get smashed.After cooking bagado,soak the cashews in water and pressure cook it for 2 whistles.Grind the masala with redchillies,gratedcoconut and tamarind into a fine paste.Add the ground masala to the bagado and bring to a boil ,also add the cashews at the same time.
Heat oil in a pan add the chopped onions and fry until they turn brownish.Add this to the dish and serve hot with rice.

Kadgi Chakko (Raw Jackfruit Sidedish)

Ingredients

1 cup fresh or frozen jackfruit

3/4 cup coconut

2-3 red chillies

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon uraddal

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

5-6 curry leaves

1/2 teaspoon jaggery

Tamarind Extract

oil

salt

Procedure:

Heat little oil and fry coriander seeds uraddal and redchillies.Grind them together with coconut,tamarind and jaggery(optional) into a coarse paste.

Cut the jackfruit into bite size pieces. Beat them lightly with a stone or rolling pin.(If using the tinned jack fruit, open tin and squeeze all water from jack fruit. Soak in water for sometime and discard the water to get rid of saltiness. Smash the jack fruit with hand or shred it).

Mix the rawjackfruit with ground masala and keep aside.Heat 1 tbl spn of oil and add mustard seeds. When they start popping, add curry leaves. And then add the mixture. Cook on a low flame for around 20mins mixing in between. Add salt (be careful if using the tinned jack fruit. Since it already has salt, add a little only if required). Mix well.

Fish Curry

This is most popular konkani dish.There are 2 types of fish curry,one of them is Teppel ambat,(teppel ,Sichuan pepper )http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sichuan_pepper and the other is alle piyav ambat.(with ginger and onions)

Fishes like Sardines,Mackeral are used for this dish.The gravy tastes great when prepared very spicy.The masala should be ground to a very smooth paste to get best taste.

Ingredients:

Grated coconut1/2 cup

Red chilies 3-4 nos

Tamarind Extract

Salt

Procedure:

Grind Coconut,redchillies and tamarind into a very fine paste.Add a teaspoon of water along with teppal and slightly crush with pestle(until the juice comes out from the teppal)

Heat the Ground Masala with sufficient quantity of water to get a gravy.Add teppal ,salt and cook till the gravy starts boiling.Now add fish(do not add fish before this if you do so the fish gets overcooked by the gravy is cooked)Fish takes around 5-10 mins to cook completely.Serve hot with Rice.

Dry Okra Masala -Bhindi Masala

Ingredients
2 lb okra slit lengthwise
1 large onion diced
1 large tomato diced
2 large garlic cloves minced
2 green chilies slit
1 tsp whole cummin
1 tsp garam masala powder
3/4 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Salt to taste

Procedure
Heat the oil. Saute cummin till light brown. Add the onions, green chilies and garlic. Fry till the onion is transparent . Add the tomato and saute until they are cooked.
Add all the powders and fry for 2-3 mins.Add the okra and mix well and fry for2-3 mins.Cover and keep it on low flame until cooked.Just before you stop cooking ,add salt and mixwell.Garnish it with coriander leaves .Eat hot with rice or chapathis.
Enjoy!