Badam Pakoda ( Peanut Fritters )

Peanuts, also known as ground nuts or monkey nuts are loaded with essential nutrients. They are a rich source of Vitamin E, niacin, folate, magnesium and phosphorus. With a high MUFA or 'good fat' content, zero trans-fat and zero sodium content, they are a boon for people suffering from cardiovascular problems. It's manganese content also helps regulate blood sugar levels.

Another reason to munch on peanuts ( other than being pocket-friendly ) is the presence of p-coumaric acid and resveratol, both powderful anti-oxidants that fight the aging process and the sundry aliments associated with it.

Peanut pakora is a snack that is equally loved in the North as well as South India. Here's the recipe:

Preparation Time - 15-20 mins

Ingredients - 3/4 cup raw peanuts, 2 tsp corn flour, 3 tsp besan or gram flour, 1 tsp red chilli powder, pinch of asafoetida, salt to taste, 2 pinch amchur, 1/4 tsp jeera-lanka powder or roasted cumin powder, oil for frying.

Preparation - Dry roast the peanuts for 3 minutes in a pan. Remove from pan and allow to cool down.

Take the corn flour, gram flour, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder, asafoetida and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the peanuts and mix well.

Add 1 tsp of hot oil. Sprinkle a little water at a time and try to form into a loose dough. It should be just enough to coat the peanuts and not watery.

Cooking - Heat oil for frying in a wok. Add the peanuts in small batches, while separating the peanuts with your fingers before adding to the oil.

Fry on low to medium flame till the sizzling sound dies away. (3-4 mins)

Remove from wok and keep on tissue paper to absorb excess oil. Repeat for remaining peanut dough.

Add the remaining chilli powder, jeera-lanka powder, amchur powder and pinch of salt to the roasted peanuts. Shake well to coat the peanuts.

Allow to cool down for becoming crunchy. Store in a airtight container.

Cheese Veggie Strips

Kids love all kinds of fried stuff. Though they are high on calories, i do give in at times and make something for my little one. This time i used some veggies and cheese along with a little seasoning to make these easy snacks. The strips can be made and stored in the fridge for 2-3 days .

Preparation Time - 20-25 minutes

Ingredients - 1 medium sized boiled and peeled potato, 2 tbs finely chopped carrots, 2 tbs finely chopped beans, 2 tbs sweet corn, 1/2 cup grated cheese, 1 tsp grated ginger, 1 tsp finely chopped garlic, 1/2 tsp pepper powder, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder or 1 tsp chilli sauce , salt to taste, 2 tsp finely chopped coriander.

For the outer layer - 1 cup freshly made bread crumbs, 1 tbs cornflour, little cornflour for dusting, salt to taste, oil for shallow frying.

Preparation - Take all the ingredients ( except those for the outer layer ) into a mixing bowl. Mix well and shape into long flat strips.

Take the 1 tbs cornflour and mix it with 3-4 tbs of water. Add a little salt and form a thin batter.

Take the breadcrumbs in a flat plate. ( To make fresh bread crumbs, take 2 slices of bread, cut off the sides and transfer to a food processor. Buzz for 1 second. Fresh breadcrumbs are ready. )

Cooking - Heat the oil in a wok.

Take each strip, dust it with a little cornflour, dip in the thin batter and roll in the breadcrumbs.

Dip in the hot oil and fry till light brown on both sides.

Serve with chilli & tomato sauce.

Khari pakoda

Khari biscuits are a favorite with almost everyone. They are light, airy and wonderfully crispy. I usually serve them to my guests with tea ( yeah i do try to resist them....loaded with butter...u know :) ) and they disapper in minutes. But at times some are left in the cupboard for too long or maybe hubby forgot to close the container properly and they lose their flavor ( no Tupperware/LocknLock works in this case ) . I had been putting those in the dustbin till last week.

But then i heard Ranbir Kapoor singing about 'Khari pakoday' with 'nukkad ki chai' in the promos of his latest flick 'Besharam'. Voila, and a new dish was born. Initially i tried making pakoras with the broken crumbs of khari biscuit and they are ok-ok types. But then i tried to take each biscuit, pull apart the layers and then dip them into the batter individually before frying. I must say these pakoras are wonderfully crisp and totally worth the effort.

Preparation time - 15 mins

Ingredients - Khari biscuits, oil for frying.

For the batter - 4 tbs besan, 1 tsp cornflour, 1/3 tsp jeera-lanka ( cumin-chilli ) powder, 1/3 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp coriander shoots finely chopped, 1 tsp green chilli finely chopped, salt to taste.

Preparation - Take all the ingredients for batter in a mixing bowl. Add water and make into a paste of medium consistency. Keep aside for 15-20 mins.

Cooking - Heat oil in a wok.

Take each khari biscuit and pull apart into 3-4 layers. Dip each piece into the batter and leave in the oil. Fry till light golden brown. Remove and keep on a tissue to drain excess oil.

Serve hot with tomato sauce and tea.

Dahi Gupchup

These days i feel like i belong to an endangered species, one of the last custodians of 'tehzeeb' or courtesy. The next generation with their 'grab-it-all' attitude no longer have the time or inclination for such niceties. Well I maybe exaggerating but i do feel that we all are being sucked up into a big 'black hole' of materialism with the media playing the role of a very tantalizing devil in thin disguise. Our wants have become all consuming living little scope for old world romanticism or even practicality.

The Dominoes and MacD's of the West have influenced our food preferences to such an extent that we no longer crave for the comfort element associated with local food which is more suited to our climate and economy. The Western food palate with its Meat & Cheese staple is essential for providing energy and heat in the cold climate while our dal-chawal or dal-roti is supposed to satiate us without the excess body heat. Nothing satiates me more than a Dahi-pakhala or arwa bahta-dalma but i inadvertently get drawn to the 'Buy 1 get 1 Wednesdays' Dominoes offer beamed on the telly. I guess i have to banish the TV to stop myself from ordering those luscious looking pizzas. Now thats' a tall order so instead i have taken a resolution to forgo any western ingredients and go back to my roots this week ( just one week at a time ).

Today i will be sharing this 'Dahi Gupchup' recipe which I used to have during my childhood years in Rourkela. There used to this obscure little thela 'cart' in front of Deepak talkies near Ambagan which sold the yummiest version of the street snack. No idea if the younger lot still frequents this place but i havn't visited it for years.(See what i was talking earlier, even i am not immune to such influences) Hence i am doing this based only on my memory and without any inputs from the guy himself. Read on:

Preparation time - 10 mins

Ingredients - 10 gupchup/puchka/puris, 2/3 cup fresh yogurt/curd, 1 tbs tamarind-dates-jaggery chutney ( u cn replace it with Imli Pichkoo ), 1 small boiled potato, 1 small onion chopped, chopped green chilli, 1 tsp sugar, salt to taste, jeera-lanka powder, kala luna (black salt), chat masala, roasted coriander powder, red chilli powder ( optional ), chopped coriander.

Preparation - Take the boiled potato in a mixing bowl. Mash it and add half of the onion, green chilli, jeera lanka powder , coriander powder and salt. Mix well.

Add a little water, salt and sugar to the yogurt and beat lightly. Dilute the tamarind-dates-jaggery/imli picchkoo with a little water.

Take the puris and arrange on a plate. Puncture the upper layer on the puris.

Put a little of the potato mixture into each one.

Pour the beaten yogurt over the puris, followed by the tamarind-dates-jaggery chutney. Sprinkle the jeera lanka powder, coriander powder, chat masala, red chilli powder kala luna and salt. Finally add the green chillis, coriander leaves and chopped onions. ( Add a little shev but its optional )

Serve immediately as the puris tend to get soggy very fast.

Corn Khichdi ( makai khichdi )

Preparation time - 10-15 mins

Ingredients - Sweet corn kernals ( 1 cup ), milk ( 2/3 cup ), cumin seeds ( 1/5 tsp ), mustard seeds ( 1/5 tsp ), a pinch of asafoetida, pinch of turmeric, dry red chilli ( 1 no ), curry leaves ( 3-4 nos ), salt to taste, lemon juice ( 1/2 tsp ), a bit of butter, cooking oil ( 1/2 tsp ), coriander leaves for garnish.

Preparation - Take 2/3rd of the corn in a grinder cup and grind for 1-2 secs to get a coarse mix.

Cooking - Heat the oil in a pan. when it smokes, add red chilli, cumin and mustard seeds. once the seeds start spluttering, add curry leaves and asafoetida.

Add all the corn after a couple of seconds. Sprinkle salt and turmeric. Stir for a minute.

Pour in the milk and cover with a lid. Allow to cook for 6-7 mins till the corn is done.

Serve hot with a dash of lemon juice, a little butter and some freshly chopped coriander.

Masala Papad Cones

Cooking Time Required: 10-12 mins
Cost of preparation: 10-15 rupees

Ingredients: Boiled potato ( 1 small ), Lijjat papad ( 1 no ), chopped coriander ( 1
tbs ), chopped ripe tomato ( 2 tbs ), red chilli flakes ( 1/3 tsp ), lemon juice ( few drops ), olive oil ( 1/5 tsp ), roasted sesame seeds ( 1/2 tsp ), salt ( to taste), any vegetable oil for deep frying.

Preparation: Peel and cut the potato into very small pieces. Transfer to a mixing bowl.

Add all the ingredients except for the papad and oil . Mix well.
















Cooking: Heat sufficient amount of oil in a deep wok.

Cut the papad into 4 pieces (quarters) and roll each piece into a cone shape. Hold the shape with the help of a pair of tongs and dip into hot oil for 20-25 secs.

Remove fried papad from wok and keep on a blotting paper/paper napkin. Allow to cool
for 5 mins.
















Stuff the prepared mixture into the papad cone.

Garnish with coriander leaves and chilli flakes and serve immediately.

Note: Use fresh papads for best results. I used a packet which was opened a month back and the papads turned a little brittle.

Masala Dosa

Cooking Time Required: 30 mins

Ingredients:
For the dosa batter: Rice ( 2 cups ), urad dal ( split and dehusked, 1 cup ), methi ( 1 tsp ), salt to taste.

For the Alu masala:

• Boiled Potatoes ( 3 large )
• onion ( 1 large )
• green peas ( 1/2 cup)
• garlic flakes ( 7-8 nos )
• ginger ( 1 inch )
• garam masala powder ( 1/3 tsp ),
• kasuri methi ( 1 tsp )
• chilli powder ( 1/2 tsp )
• chopped coriander leaves ( 2 tbs )
• 2 tsp oil
• salt to taste

Garnishing -

• 1/2 cup grated carrot
• 1/2 cup grated coconut
• 4 tsp chopped cilantro
• oil/butter for cooking the dosa

Preparation: Soak the rice and urad dal for 5-6 hours. Add the fenugreek seeds and
grind into a smooth paste without adding too much water. Leave overnight.

Chop the onion into small pieces. Peel the potatoes and mash them.

The garlic and ginger needs to be crushed into a not so fine paste.

Cooking: Heat the oil in a pan. Add crushed garlic, ginger and half of the chopped onion. Fry till onion turns translucent. Add green peas and sprinkle a little salt. Fry till the peas are half-cooked.

Add the powdered masalas. Fry for 1 min. Add the potato along with salt to taste. Stir and mix throughly. Cook for another 5 mins. Add kasuri methi and chopped coriander leaves.


















Heat a dosa tawa. Sprinkle a little oil. Rub with a cloth to spread the oil and absorb any excess.

Take 3/4th cup of batter and spread into a thin layer. Drizzle a few drops of oil on
all sides. Add the potato and vegetable mixture in the middle. Sprinkle a little
chopped onion, carrot, coconut and coriander. Allow the dosa to cook till light brown .

















Fold the dosa and close it. Serve hot.

Sabudana Khichdi

Sabudana Khichdi is a Maharashtrian recipe which is usually prepared on fasting days like Navratri. The recipe makes use of roasted and coarsely grated peanut powder which can be omitted in case one is allergic to peanuts. I used sesame instead when I make it for my hubby who suffers from peanut allergy.

The big tapioca pearls are preferable for this recipe as they turn out to be fluffier. But the soaking time required is more. When in a hurry, go for the smaller grains.

To cut down on the cholesterol, one can replace the ghee with refined oil and just add 3-4 drops ghee after cooking for that distinct flavour.

Cooking Time Required: 10-15 mins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup large Sabudana / Tapioca pearls
• 1 medium sized potato
• 2 green chillis
• 1 inch ginger
• 1/2 tsp roasted and crushed peanuts 
• 3-4 tbsp freshly grated coconut  (optional)
• 1/3 tsp cumin seeds 
• 1 tsp ghee
• 2 tsp oil
• salt to taste ( use pink salt during fasting )
• chopped coriander leaves 
• 1 tsp lime juice

Preparation: Chop the potato and green chilli into small pieces.

Wash and soak the sabudana for 3-4 hours. Drain well and keep aside. [ Soaking and cooking time will vary with the variety used ]

Cooking: Heat the ghee and oil in a pan. Add the cumin seeds followed by the green chilis and finely minced ginger. Add the chopped potatoes and fry till potato pieces become almost cooked.

Add the soaked sabudana along with salt. Sprinkle a little water if required and cook for 3-4 mins.

Garnish with the crushed peanuts, chopped coriander leaves, lime juice and grated coconut.

Serve with sweetened skimmed yogurt. A healthy snack/meal is ready.

Palak Sev Chaat

Cooking Time Required: 10-15 mins
Cost of Preparation: 15-20 rupees

Ingredients: Paalak/Spinach ( a bunch ), besan/gram flour (8-10 tsp ), sev bhujia ( 1 cup), baking powder ( 1/5 tsp ), curd/yogurt ( 4-5 tsp), sugar ( 1-2 tsp ), cumin
powder ( 1/5 tsp), salt to taste, oil for frying, sweet/spicy tamarind chutney (
optional, to taste).

Preparation: Wash and cut the paalak into strips.

Transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the besan, baking powder, cumin powder and salt to
taste. Sprinkle a few drops of water if required to bind the besan with the leaves.

Beat the yogurt with sugar and 2 tsp of water.

Cooking: Heat oil in a wok/deep vessel.

Add the palak strips to the hot oil. Fry on both sides for 1-2 mins. Remove from wok
and keep aside on a plate.

Add the sev bhujia generously over the palak pakodas. Sprinkle a little sweetened curd and sweet/spicy tamarind chutney.

Tasty Palak Sev chaat is ready to be served hot.

Note: I had to make the palak pakodas with very little besan and a bit of cornflour as i realized that i had ran out of a very vital ingredient at the 11th hour. Had made up my mind by that time to have the chaat so went ahead and made it. But i can vouch that the version i had a friend's place with ample amount of besan was better.

Cheesy Dip

Ingredients: Cheese spread ( 1 tbs ), thick sour curd ( 2 tbs ), garlic & pepper tabasco sauce ( 2/3 tsp ), lime juice ( 1/3 tsp), garlic flakes ( 2 nos ), salt.

Prepartion: Crush the garlic flakes and add to the rest of the ingredients. Mix well.

Serve with Nancho/Salsa Chips/samosa.

Note: Keep refrigerated and use with 1-2 days.

Cheesy Potatoes

Cooking Time Required: 20-30 mins
Cost of Preparation: 50-60 Rupees

Makes 8-10 nos

Ingredients: Potatoes ( 2 large ), ginger garlic paste ( 1 tsp ), cumin powder ( 1/2 tsp ), red chilli powder ( 1/2 tsp ), Amul cheese cubes ( 3-4 nos ), corn flour ( 4 tbs ), besan ( gram flour, 4 tbs ), oregano ( 1/2 tsp ), pepper powder ( 1 tsp ), baking powder ( 1 pinch ), bread crumbs, salt, oil for frying.

Cooking: Boil the potatoes in a pressure cooker . Keep aside to cool.

Mix the corn flour, gram flour, oregano, pepper, baking powder and salt with a little amount of water. The paste should have a thick consistency.

Peel the potaoes and mash them.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a pan. Add the ginger-garlic paste and stir fry for 2 mins.

Add the mashed potato, salt, chilli powder and cumin powder. Fry till the potato leaves the sides of the pan. Remove from fire and keep aside to cool.

Grate the cheese cubes, spreading evenly over a plate. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over another plate.

Heat sufficient oil in a wok.

Shape the potato into small oblong pieces between the palm and the fingers.

Roll the pieces over the grated cheese and keep it between the two palms to allow cheese to stick firmly over the potato.

Dip the cheesy potato into the corn flour-gram flour batter. Roll it over the breadcrumbs.

Put into the hot oil . Fry till golden-brown.

Serve as a snack/starter.

Bread Pizza - Nothing oriya about it!!!

Cooking Time Required: 5 mins
Cost of preparation: 15-20 rupees

Ingredients: Bread (4 slices), Tomato ( 1 no., medium), Capsicum (1 no., medium), onion (1 small), garlic (1-2 pods), cheese (2 cubes), pepper powder( 1 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Cut the tomato, capsicum, and onion into thin slices. The garlic should be minced into flakes.

Cooking: Heat a pan. Layer the tomato, capsicum and onion over the bread slices. Grate the cheese cubes over it. Add pepper, garlic flakes and salt to taste. Place the bread on the pan and cover with a lid. Wait for 2 mins and remove pan from stove. Keep it covered for about 2-3 mins.
Eat it hot with tomato/tabasco/mustard sauce.


Tips: For those who are not very inclined towards onion and garlic, shredded cabbage can be used as an ideal substitute.