Patanjali Madhuram Natural Sugar Review

I will be very honest about why I got this one. My regular readers must be well aware of my family's fondness for cakes and muffins. And this one works out to be both healthier than white sugar and cheaper than brown sugar and Demerara sugar.

Made from pure sugarcane juice without any added sulphur, it retains all the benefits that sugarcane juice can boast of. Rich in calcium and magnesium, it is also touted to be helpful in health conditions like dry cough, cough with sputum, indigestion and constipation (as mentioned on the packet/Patanjali website).

It can be used as a substitute for white sugar in milk, lassi, kheer, sherbats, mithai and any other recipe which uses the former.

Read on how it measures up -

Advantages -

1. Free from sulphur and other chemicals.
2. Loaded with calcium, iron and magnesium.
3. Tastes good when used. in Tea (which is big plus for me), aam panna, sweet chutneys, kheer and ragi sherbat.
4. Cheaper than brown sugar or Demerara sugar. Costs Rs 60/- per Kg.
5. Available online.
6. Boasts of medicinal benefits (not verified).


Disadvantages -

1. Since it has a deep brown color, it affects the usual appearance of the dishes (especially light colored ones).
2. Still contains too many calories, so weight watchers have to be careful.
3. Not suitable for diabetics.
4. Costly when compared to white sugar ( retails approx in the range of 40-50 rupees )

Keeping the above points in mind, I would rate it a 4.25/5.
And would I repurchase it ?? Yes. Yes.Yes. I got 2 1-Kg packets and have almost used up the first one. Will definitely buy more once I have worked my way through the remaining one.

Farfalle Aglio et Olio

The simplest pasta recipe ever. And I did not even know that it had a name before I read it on Priya's blog. Usually made by me when I am feeling too lazy or low, this one sure perks me up every time. While I do add some grated cheese to it, have skipped it this time as the original do not call for it. And while the fresh parsley is an integral part of this recipe, I seldom have it (or any other herb for that matter) in store when I cook up this pasta. Have to rely on my sun-dried herbs (Keya brand) most of the time.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation - 12 mins

Ingredients -


1 cup farfalle paste
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3-4 garlic flakes (chopped fine)
1/2 tsp red chilli flakes
1/4 tsp dried parsley/mixed herbs/pizza seasoning
salt


Cooking - Boil 6-7 cups of water in a large saucepan. When it starts bubbling, add sufficient salt.

When it gets to a rolling boil, add the pasta and cook for 12 mins.

When the pasta has been cooking for about 8 mins, put another pan/wok on the flame. Add olive oil to the wok and allow it to warm a bit. In the meanwhile, drain the still al-dente pasta and keep aside.

Add the garlic flakes and saute till they give off their smell. Add the farfalle along with the chilli flakes and dried herbs. Saute for 2-3 mins.

Remove from wok and serve hot.

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A little bit of cheese adds a lot to this simple recipe. Include it if you wish.

Patanjali Turmeric Powder

On my last trip to Rourkela (my native in Odisha), I was introduced to many Patanjali products and since then I have become totally hooked. It was tough to find them in Bangalore unless one visited their stores which was a pain in itself (not the store but the traffic enroute). That was before I discovered that they are available online on Zopnow.com (Muuah...I cant thank you folks enuf) .But somehow it never came to my mind to review them before I stumbled upon quite a few reviews in the beauty blogs.

So, here comes the first one. And before you ask me why I picked this product first, try and imagine Indian cooking without 'Haldi'. Naah....it is the one that gives that beautiful hue to our curries and dal. And this one did make me nostalgic. It reminds one of the 'Chakki ka Pisa hua haldi' our moms used in their kitchen. Oh-so-pure. Buying whole turmeric, drying it and finally taking it to the neighbourhood Chakki an be quite a task. But why make so much effort when you have this one available.


Read on for the review -

Advantages -

1. Gives a very nice and natural color. (And Patanjali poducts are renowned to be pure and free from chemical dyes )
2. Skin friendly. I used it in my ubtan and applied on my face too. It did not burn like some other brands.
3. It is economical and cost Rs 22 per 100 gms. (same as other brands but cheaper as compared to the organic stuff)
4. Gives nice color with less quantity used.
5. Available online on Zopnow.com.


Disadvantages -

1. Not sure if it is totally organic and free from pesticides and fertilizer traces. The label does not mention anything.

Keeping the above points in mind, I would rate it a 4.75/5. (-0.25 for not mentioning if it is organic in origin). And do not ask if I would repurchase it. Have been using it since January this year and do not remember the number of packets used up.

Dindigul Thalapakatti Biriyani

The Southern cuisine from India is replete with a whole lot of biryani varieties. It is as if each state has its own trademark version of the fragrant rice dish and the local masses swear by their own 'biriyani' (Yep...it is refferd to as biriyani in the South while the Northern parts prefer biryani). While the Hyderabadi Dum Biryani remains more popular on a pan national level, I was amazed by the popularity of the Chettinad and Ambur biryanis in Karnataka. But i guess the crown goes to Tamil Nadu when it comes to the sheer numbers. The Chettinad, Ambur and Dindigul biriyani all belong to different districts of the state.


A few ingredients more or less, use of different varieties of rice, cooking all the spices togather or separately frying each one can make a whole world of difference when it comes to the taste of biryani. For example, in case of the Dindigul biriyani, the onions, ginger-garlic, mint-corinader-chili, whole spices and tomato are all ground and fried separately. 'Treat each ingredient with its due respect' seems to be the mantra behind it. Sounds cumbersome if you compare it with the Hyderabdi biryani where everything is marinated and cooked together. But if you have the quest to try out the original Dindigul biriyani, you need to do it the right way. One can use mutton instead of chicken, but remember to cook the marinated mutton for 2-3 whistles along the spices before adding rice to it.

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 1 hour

Ingredients -


1 kg chicken on the bone (cut into medium sized pieces)
4 cups basmati rice ( the original recipe uses Seeraga Samba rice )
1 large + 1 medium sized onion
2 medium sized tomatoes ( i used country or local ones which were quite a bit tangy )
1 cup mint leaves (tightly packed)
2/3 cup coriander leaves (tightly packed)
3-4 green chilis
1 tbsp GG paste
2-3 green cardamom
2 bay leaves
3-4 cloves
2" cinnamon stick
salt to taste
3 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp oil
1 cup thick coconut milk ( though this can be optional, it adds an authentic flavor. I used only 1/2 cup instead of skipping it altogether )

For the marinade -

1/2 tbsp GG paste
1 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
2/3 cup yogurt
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste



Preparation - Clean and pat dry the chicken pieces.

Take all the ingredients listed under marinade in a large mixing bowl. Whisk together and then add the chicken pieces to it. Rub the marinade over the chicken pieces for 5-6 minutes (important step). Cover the bowl and keep it in the fridge overnight (if not overnight at least 3-4 hours).

Peel and chop the onion into chunks. Transfer to a mixer and make a coarse paste. Keep aside.

Similarly, chop the mint, coriander and green chillis. Transfer to a mixer and make a coarse paste. Keep aside.

Finally chop the tomato into chunks and put in a mixer jar. Make a fine puree out of it. Keep aside.

Soak the basmati rice for 1-2 hours before cooking.

Cooking - Take the oil in a wide bottomed vessel and heat it. Add the ghee to it. When the ghee has melted, add the onion paste and fry till it turns light brown.

Add the GG paste and fry till raw smell goes away.

Add the mint-coriander-chili paste and fry for 2-3 minutes.

Add the whole spices and fry for 1 minute.

Add the tomato puree along with a little salt and fry till oil starts to ooze out.

Add the chicken pieces and stir everything together. Cook on a medium to high flame till chicken is about 70 percent done. Switch off the flame.

Wash and drain the rice. Heat a pressure cooker and add the rice to it. Smooth out the rice surface with a spatula. Add 1 cup coconut milk and enough water such that the level remains just an inch over the rice. Add the chicken and mix in. Finally pour a little ghee over the contents of the pressure cooker.

Close the lid and cook for approx 12-15 mins or till 1 whistle. Remove from flame and keep aside for 15-20 mins.

Open the lid and fluff up the rice grains with a fork.

Serve hot with raita.

For the Biryani lovers, check out these popular varieties on my Blog :-


1. Chettinad Veg Biriyani

2. Vegetable Biriyani (Hyderabadi recipe)

3. Ambur Chicken Biriyani

4. Chicken Kofta Biryani

5. Hyderabadi Chicken Biriyani

Pal Payasam

A yummy payasam 'rice pudding' recipe from Tamil Nadu. Made on auspicious occasions like Gokulasthami, it takes hours to get it right when done in the traditional method. And the added danger in this method it that one cannot leave it unattended as the rice and milk mixture tends to catch/burn easily.

I felt that this one is very close in preparation method to the 'Bhaja Chaula Kheeri'. However, people in Odisha usually add some sugar in the beginning which gets caramelized and adds a distinct flavor to the kheer. Also, it it more fluid as compared to the Kheer made in Odisha or in the North. And the rice grains in payasam remain conspicuous  in comparison to kheer wherein the grains almost melt and become indistinguishable. ( I tend to remember the last bit in a very clear manner as it had led to an embarrassing situation. One of my Tamil neighbors had offered me some still hot kheer and i promptly blurted out after tasting it ." G...,I think it needs to be cooked for some more time. Did you switch off the gas because the baby woke up ??", I said. It was a bit awkward as she stared at my face. It took some explanation from her side to make me realize what payasam would actually taste/appear like.


Read on  -

Preparation Time - 40-50 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 liter full cream milk
• 1/4 cup basmati rice or any fragrant rice ( I have used Seeraga Samba rice )
• 1/2 cup sugar (adjust to taste)
• 1/4 cup condensed milk
• 2-3 green cardamoms (crushed)
• 2 tsp ghee
• few cashews
• few raisins

Preparation - Wash and soak the rice for 1 hour. Strain through a thin cloth to drain off excess water .

Cooking - Heat the ghee in a thick bottomed vessel. Add cashews and raisins. As the raisins swell up, remove and keep aside. Next add the rice and fry till fragrant. Switch off the flame.

Add about 1 1/2 cup of milk to a pressure cooker and stir in the rice. Switch on the flame. Cook on low till the rice gets cooked (3-4 whistles).

While the rice is being cooked, boil and reduce the remaining milk to half in a separate vessel.

Add the reduced milk to the rice, stir in sugar, crushed cardamoms, cashews and raisins. Cook for another 6-7 minutes. (DO NOT LEAVE IT UNATTENDED AT THIS STAGE)

Finally stir in the condensed milk and switch off the flame. Allow it to cool down a bit before serving (It can also be served chilled).

Garnish with some cashews and serve.

Note - Use of condensed milk is optional but it gives a nice texture and richness to the payasam. (And if you have wondering why it takes 3-4 whistles to cook the rice, cooking with milk takes a little longer when compared to cooking with water.)

Guanra Besara Bhaja ( Guar bean Fry )

Another one from the drafts. This one dates back atleast six months. Made it on my last visit to Odisha. As my husband and in-laws tend to stay away from this vegetable, I  never cook it at home.

A simple stir fry made with a touch of besara ( mustard and garlic paste), this is most common preparation method of bhajjis (or 'bhaja' as we call it) in Odisha. Quick, easy and healthy. Read on to get the recipe -

Preparation Time - 12-14 mins

Ingredients -

2 cups guar beans ( cut into  1 1/2 inch long pieces )
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 garlic flakes
1 red chilli
1/4 tsp pancha phutana
2 tsp oil
2 pinch turmeric
salt to taste

Preparation - Grind the mustard and garlic into a fine paste with very little water. This is besara . Some people also add a little cumin to this.

Cooking- Take 1/2 cup water in a wide vessel. Add salt and turmeric followed by the guar beans and the besara. Cook covered on medium flame till the beans are cooked through.

(Check this by pressing a spatula against one. If it cuts through, it is done. Most water should have been evaporated by now. If not, turn up the flame a bit.)

Heat the oil in a wok. Add broken red chilli and pancha phutana. Once the seeds start popping, add the boiled beans and fry for 2 minutes. Remove from flame.

Serve immediately with white rice.

Jackfruit Biryani

While this post had been lying in the 'Drafts' for over a year, I never got around to clicking the pics when I had prepared this biryani last time. And jackfruit being seasonal, I had to wait till tender jackfruits were back in the markets to prepare another batch of this mouth watering dish.

As jackfruit has a fibrous texture that somewhat mimics meat, it is usually prepared in the same style as chicken/mutton curry in Odisha. With quite a bit of onions, GG paste and spices going into its preparation, a good jackfruit curry still retains its distinctive flavor. Odiya folks love their jackfruit as is evident in the wide variety of dishes that they cook up with this fruit cum vegetable. (Check some of the recipe mentioned at the end of this post)

Read on for the recipe of 'Jackfruit Biryani'-

Preparation Time - 30-35 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 cup basmati rice
• 1 1/2 cup tender jackfruit cubes
• 1/3 cup shelled green peas
• 1 large onion
• 1 1/2 tsp GG paste
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• 1 large tomato (freshly pureed)
• 4 tsp chopped mint leaves
• 4 tsp chopped coriander leaves
• a few strands of mace
• 2 pinch nutmeg powder
• 3-4 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 3 green cardamon
• 1 tsp ghee
• 3 tsp oil
• salt to taste
• 1 tsp lemon juice (optional)

Preparation - Chop the onion into thin long slices.

Wash and soak the rice for 1-2 hours.

Cooking - Boil the jackfruit cubes for 7-8 minutes with 3-4 cups water and a little salt. Drain off the water and keep the jackfruit aside. This step gets rid of the bitterness if any.

Heat 2 1/2 tsp oil in a wok. Add the onions and fry till light brown.

Add the GG paste and fry till raw smell goes away. Add the tomato puree and fry till oil starts to separate out.

Add turmeric, chili powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and garam masala. Fry for 1 minute.

Add the jackfruit cubes and green peas. Stir fry for 3-4 minutes or till the jackfruit is tender or almost cooked.

Add the soaked rice along with the chopped mint and coriander leaves. Fry till the leaves wilt up a bit. Add 1 1/3 cups water. Add salt to taste. Finally drop in the whole spices, nutmeg powder and remaining ghee.

Cook on a medium low flame for 1 whistle (approx 12-14 mins). Remove and keep aside for 15-20 mins. Open the lid and fluff the rice grains with a fork.

Serve hot with raita.

Note - One can also deep fry the jackfruit cubes before adding it to onion-tomato masala. This gives a slightly different flavor.


Do check out these Jackfruit (Kathal) recipes from Odisha :-


1. Panasa Dalma (Kathal Wali Dal)

2. Panasa Tarkari (Jackfruit Curry)

3. Panasa Cutlet

4. Muga Dali - Panasa Tarkari

5. Panasa Bhaja



For the Biryani lovers, check out these popular varieties on my Blog :-


1. Chettinad Veg Biriyani

2. Vegetable Biriyani (Hyderabadi recipe)

3. Ambur Chicken Biriyani

4. Chicken Kofta Biryani

5. Hyderabadi Chicken Biriyani

Ragi Buttermilk

Another healthy and traditional drink from Odisha. A few days back I had posted the recipe for Ragi Sharbat (sweet) on my blog which elicted quite a few surprises. Most people were not aware that Ragi can be consumed in the raw form. Here is the savory version of the drink which can be best as 'Ragi Buttermilk'.
There is yet another version in which Ragi flour is dissolved in 'Torani', the water that is discarded after cooking rice. But I will leave it for some other time.

Read on for the recipe-

Preparation Time - 5 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 tall glass buttermilk
• 2 tsp Ragi flour
• 1 tsp chopped coriander leaves
• 1/3 tsp chopped green chilli
• 1/3 inch ginger (finely grated)
• salt to taste

Preparation - Throw in all the ingredients in a blender. Buzz for a few seconds.

Pour into a tall glass with a few ice cubes thrown in.

Serve immediately.


Note - If you do not have buttermilk available, make your own. Take 3-4 tsp yogurt with a glass of water in a blender and buzz for 1 minutes. Throw in some ice so that the fat separates out and floats to the top.

Homemade Multigrain atta

While a whole lot of high-fibre products are flooding the markets, targeting those who want to lose weight or those suffering from diabetes, natural or homemade still remains the best. I have chosen to write about the so called fortified flours that re being marketed aggressively as rotis are an integral part of the Indian diet. For those who have checked the labels on the packets of multigrain atta easily available these days, the proportion of other grains remain quite low as compared to wheat.

Hence I decided to make my own version (tailor-made for my needs) at home. Used high fibre stuff like soya and oats. Calcium rich ragi is also added to fortify it further while flax seeds add a good dose of Omega-3 and minerals to it. One can also add more soya flour to further lower the GI value of this flour.

Ingredients -

• 1 1/2 cup whole wheat atta
• 1/4 cup ragi
• 1/4 cup soya ( used 99 % fat free soya granules )
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1 tbsp flax seeds

Preparation - Take the ragi, soya, oata and flax seeds in a grinder jar. Buzz for a few minutes to get an almost fine powder. (Or take it to the neighbouring chakki if you prefer a very fine powder)

Take all the flours in a decent sized container. Close and lid and give it a good shake so that they get mixed. Store and use as required.

One can use this flour for making rotis/parantha/puri/dosa and even halwa!!

A super healthy lunch made with my special multi-grain Atta

Khoya Paratha

If there is one food hotspot of India that gets featured over and over on television, its the -'Paranthe wali gali' in Delhi. Ofcourse the 'Khao Gali' in Mumbai comes close. Or maybe its a tie between the two for the Numero Uno position. I guess it just depends on how many times an individual has caught it on television. But coming back to the 'Paranthe Wali gali', the last time I caught it on TV inspired me to try out atleast a dozen of the varities described. Some really sounded exotic like this 'Khoya parantha'.

Preparation Time - 12-15 mins

Ingredients -

• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat atta
• 2/3 cup unsweetened khoya
• 1/4 cup chopped raisins and cashews
• 2-3 tsp sugar
• salt to taste
• milk for kneading the dough (optional)
• 3-4 tsp oil or ghee for frying the Paranthas

Preparation - Take the dough on a kneading plate/ wide vessel. Sprinkle salt and mix in.

Add milk little by little and make a smooth and soft dough. Apply little oil or cling film over the dough and keep aside.

Cooking - Heat a frying pan. Add 1/2 tsp oil/ghee. Add the raisins and cashews and fry for 10-15 seconds.

Next add the crumbled khoya and fry till it turns light brown in color. Sprinkle sugar and cook on low flame till sugar melts in. Switch off flame and keep aside.

Pinch small balls out of the dough and roll into small circles. Place a little of the khoya mixture over one circle and apply little water around its circumference. Put another circle over it and press lightly to close the ends.

Heat a flat tawa and place the parantha over it. Drizzle ghee/oil and cook on medium flame till little brown spots appear. Flip over to the other side and add some more ghee/oil. Cook till brown spots appear and then remove from tawa.

Repeat for the remaining paranthas.

Serve as it is or with some sweet / savoury side dish. ( This is usually accompanied by 'kele ki chutney' in Paranthe Wali Gali. Will post the recipe soon. )

Note - Any leftover khoya mixture can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for upto a month (as per my experience). No need to warm it before using. It reverts to its original texture as it gets cooked with the paranthas.

Fish Cutlet

Yeah..it seems to be raining cutlets in my kitchen and everyone is loving it!! Thank God for it!! Finally those long missed out posts on cutlets are making their way into my blog. Simple and easy to do without much oil or spices, they make for a tasty snack or even a side dish. So when I had some leftover fried fish sitting in my fridge, I did not think twice before making it into cutlets. (Actually we had bought over 2 Kgs of Rohu fish last weekend and had made fish fry, besara and masala jholo with it. So the cutlets actually added some variety.)

Read on for the recipe -

Preparation Time - 20 mins

Ingredients -

• 4 large pieces/slices of fried Rohu fish
• 1 cup boiled potato cubes
• 1 large sized onion ( finely chopped)
• 1/2 tsp grated ginger
• 1/2 tsp grated/crushed garlic
• 1/2 - 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• a pinch of turmeric
• 4-5 tsp oil
• salt to taste

For the outer layer

• 1 egg (lightly beaten)
• a pinch of salt
• a pinch of chili powder
• 1 cup breadcrumbs

Preparation - Remove any bones from the fish pieces and lightly crumble with your fingers.

Mash the potatoes. Break any lumps but do not make it too smooth.

Lightly beat the egg with some salt and chilli powder.



Cooking - Heat 2 tsp oil in a wok. Add the onions and fry till translucent.

Add the ginger and garlic and fry for 2-3 mins. Now add the fish and fry for another 2 minutes. Then add the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle all the powders except garam masala. Mix and fry for 4-5 minutes on medium flame. (add a few spoons of water if it is getting too dry

Sprinkle garam masala.. Mix and switch off flame.

Allow to cool down to a tolerable temperature. Then pinch small balls out of the mix and fashion into round or fish shaped cutlets.

Dip into the egg and gently roll over the bread crumbs to make a uniform coating. Make similar cutlets out of the remaining mix.

Heat a non-stick tawa/frying pan. Drizzle with a little oil or use a oil spray.

Place the cutlets over it and cook on both sides for a few minutes till little brown spots appear. Remove from the tawa/frying pan.

Serve immediately with some onion rings and lemon juice.