Piaji Tarkari ( Dal Vade ki subzi )

Cooking Time Required: 30-35 mins
Cost of preparation: 35-45 rupees

Ingredients: Piaji ( 8-10 nos), potato ( 1 large ), onion ( 1 medium ), tomato ( 1 large ), garlic flakes ( 3-4 nos ), ginger-garlic paste ( 1 tsp ), cumin seeds ( 1/2 tsp), coriander seeds ( 1 1/2 tsp), chilli powder ( 1/2 tsp), dry red chillis ( 3-4 nos), cardamon ( 2 nos ), bay leaves ( 1-2 nos), cloves ( 2 nos ), cinnamon ( 1 inch long ), fennel seeds ( 1/2 tsp), garam masala ( 2 pinches ), turmeric, salt, oil ( 6-7 tsp ).

Prepartion: Chop the potato into large chunks.

Dry roast the cumin seeds , coriander seeds, 2 whole red chillis, cardamon, cinnamon, and cloves.

Grind the all the whole spices without adding any water . Then add the chopped onion, tomato and garlic flakes along with water and grind into a smooth paste.

Cooking: Heat the oil in a wok. Add the potato pieces along with a pinch of turmeric. Fry for 5 mins, remove from wok and keep aside.

Add the red chillis and bay leaves followed by the ground onion-tomato-masala paste and turmeric, and stir fry for 4-5 mins. The add the ginger garlic paste. Fry till the raw smell goes off ( abt 5 mins). Add the red chilli powder and fried potatoes and stir fry for 2 mins.

Add 3 cups of water along with a little amount of salt. Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 2-3 mins.

Add the piaji and simmer for another 8-10 mins or till the piaji softens. Do not stir vigourously so the piaji might break.

Serve with rice/roti.

Note: Refer to my earlier post for preparing the piaji :

Piaji ( Split Gram fritters )

Janhi Posta ( Ridge gourd cooked with poppy paste )

Cost of Preparation: 30-35 Rupees
Preparation Time: 10-15 mins

Ingredients: Ridge gourd ( cut into large chunks, 1 1/2 cups ), potato ( cut into thin slices, 1/3 cup ), onion ( 1 small ), red chillis ( 2 nos ), garlic cloves ( 1-2 nos ), poppy seeds ( 1 tsp ), coriander seeds ( 1/5 tsp ), fennel seeds ( 1/5 tsp ), turmeric ( 1 pinch ), oil ( 2-3 tsp), cumin seeds ( a pinch ), salt.

Preparation: Grind the poppy seeds without water to crush them. Add the garlic cloves along with a little water and grind for 5 secs to get into a coarse paste.

Cooking: Heat a pan. Add 1 tsp oil followed by the ridge gourd & potato pieces. Sprinkle some turmeric and stir for 4-5 mins. Remove from pan and keep aside.

Add the remaining oil to the pan. Add the coriander, fennel and cumin seeds along with the broken red chillis. Stir for 30-40 secs.

Add the chopped onion and cook till it turns translucent. Add the poppy seeds paste.
Cook for 2-3 mins. Add the fried ridge gourd and potato pieces along with 1/2 cup water and salt.

Bring to a boil and allow to simmer till all the water evaporates. Remove from pan and serve with white rice .

Note: The sweet taste of ridge gourd and potatoes is enhanced by the use of fennel, coriander & poppy seeds. Tastes heavenly when served with a spicy curry as it offsets the spiciness.

My Blog Turns 1 Today !!!!!

Its' been one whole year since i started this blog. My first post was published on 23rd June 2010. And ever since i have been been showered with lots of love and affection.

I take this opportunity to thanks everyone who has been visiting my blog and encouraging me with their comments. A special Thanks to Ushnish for posting the first comment on my blog.

I would have liked to mention each one of you but the list is getting endless. Also apologize for not be able to post any new recipes today as i am a little short of time.

Please do visit some of my most popular recipes till date if you have the time:

Dalma - dal cooked with vegetables

Chicken curry - oriya preparation

Mansa Kasa (Mutton kasa)

Gupchup - orissa style 'Pani-puri';

Maccha Patua ( Fish cooked in a mustard-garlic paste )

Poee Chenccheda

Badi-Palanga saaga

Gota Bhendi Bhaja ( Stuffed Okra )

Cost of Preparation: 30-35 Rupees
Preparation Time: 10-15 mins

Ingredients: Ladiesfinger/Okra/bhendi ( 8-10 nos ), green chillis ( 2 nos ), garlic
cloves ( 4-5 nos ), mustard seeds ( 1 tsp ), poppy (posta seeds, 1 tsp ), roasted cumin powder ( 1/5 tsp ), turmeric ( 1 pinch ), mustard oil ( 2-3 tsp), dry red chilli ( 2 nos ), salt.

Preparation: Wash the ladies finger and make slits along its length. Cut the green
chillis into small pieces.

Grind the mustard & poppy seeds, and garlic cloves into a smooth paste.

Cooking: Heat a pan. Add 1/2 tsp oil followed by the green chillis and turmeric. Stir for 30 seconds followed by the mustard-poppy-garlic paste and cumin powder.

Cook for 2-3 mins. Remove from pan and keep aside to cool down a bit.

Stuff the paste into the slit ladiesfinger. Keep aside for 10-15 mins.

Heat 1 1/2 oil in a pan. Add the red chillis followed by the ladiesfinger and stir fry for 8-10 mins.

Serve with white rice and dal.

Note: Usually the ladies finger is stuffed with a mustard-garlic paste, which can be a bit too spicy if one is not used to mustard paste. Hence i have added the poppy to reduce the spiciness.

Doodh Cola - from the streets of Kolkata

Cost of Preparation: 20-25 Rupees
Preparation Time: 5-10 mins

Ingredients: Chilled Thums up ( 300 ml), chilled milk ( 250 ml ), sugar ( 3 tsp ),
icecubes ( 5-6 nos ).
For serving: Small sized ( 150 ml ) glasses ( 5-6 nos ).

Preparation: Add the ice-cubes to the mixer jar. Churn for 30-40 seconds to get crushed ice.

Add milk and powdered sugar. Churn for 1 minute.

Pour the chilled thums-up and churn for 1-2 minute to get rid of the carbon dioxide.

Pour into glasses & serve immediately.

Piaji ( Split Gram fritters/ Dal Vada )

Cooking Time Required: 15-20 mins
Cost of Preparation: 30-35 rupees

Ingredients: Channa dal (split gram, 1 cup ), green chillis ( 4 nos ), onion ( 1 no., medium ), curry leaves ( 2 sprigs ), ginger garlic paste ( 1 tsp ), cumin powder ( 1/4 tsp ), coriander powder ( 1/4 tsp ), baking powder ( 1/3 tsp ), salt to taste.

Preparation: Soak the channa dal for 5-6 hours. Wash and grind into a thick & coarse paste along with a little water.

Add the finely chopped green chillis, onions and curry leaves, along with the remaining spices and baking powder. Add salt to taste and keep aside for 15 mins.















Cooking: Heat oil in a wok for deep frying.

Shape the paste into balls and put into the hot oil. Cook on both sides to a slight reddish color.

Serve hot with ghuguni.

Note: Piaji Ghuguni is an ideal tea time snack in most Odiya homes and it tastes heavenly when combined with a cup of hot tea during the rains .

Another way of eating this is turning it into a yummy Piaji Chaat -

Kankadaa Tarkari (Odia style Crab Curry)

Cooking Time Required: 30-35 mins
Cost of preparation: 120-150 rupees

Ingredients: Crabs ( 1 Kg.), onions ( 1 large ), potato ( 1 large ), coriander seeds ( 1 tsp ), cumin seeds ( 1/2 tsp), finely chopped garlic pods ( 1 tbs ), red chilli powder ( 1/3 nos ), ginger-garlic paste ( 1 tbs ), tomato ( 2 medium ), green chillis ( 4-5 nos ), turmeric ( 1/3 tsp), cinnamon ( 1 inch long ), small cardamon ( 2 nos), clove ( 3 nos ), mustard oil ( 7 tsp ), chopped coriander leaves ( 2 tbs ), salt.

Preparation: Clean the crabs. Add 1 tsp mustard oil, 2 chopped green chillis, turmeric and salt. Allow to marinate for 15-20 mins.
































Cooking: Put a wok on the stove and put 3 tsp oil in it . When the oil starts smoking, add the marinated crab meat . Stir fry for 8-10 mins on a medium to high flame. Remove from the wok and keep aside.

Stir fry the potato pieces in the same wok for 5 mins and keep aside.

Cook the onion and tomatoes in a pressure cooker for 2-3 whistles. Drain the excess
water and keep aside (Use this water for the final cooking.). Crush the onions and
tomatoes into a paste.

Dry roast the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon, cardamon and cloves for 30-40
seconds. Grind into a fine powder.

Heat a wok. Add the remaining oil. Add the onion and tomato paste along with a little salt. Stir fry for 5 mins on a medium flame.Add the ginger garlic paste and cook on a medium flame for 5-6 mins.

Add the powdered masala along with chilli powder, chopped green chillis and garlic. Put the fried crab & potato and stir fry for another 3 mins.
































Add 3 cups of hot water. Bring to a boil . Cover with a lid and allow to simmer for 10 mins. Sprinkle the chopped coriander leaves and remove from stove. Crab curry is ready to eat.

Serve with rice .

Note: This is a low calorie version of my earlier post on 'Kankada Jholo'. I have reduced the amount of oil and made subtle changes in the spices used in the earlier preparation.

Sapuri Khatta

Cooking time required: 15-20 mins
Cost of preparation: 15-20 rupees

Ingredients: 4-5 slices of ripe pineapple (1 no), curry leaves( 2 sprigs), red chilli (1-2 nos), turmeric powder (1/5 tsp), cumin seeds (1/5 tsp), mustard seeds ( 1/5 tsp), fennel seeds ( 1/5 tsp ), fenugreek seeds ( 1 pinch), oil ( 2 tsp), sugar ( 6-7 tsp), asafoetida ( 1/6 tsp), jeera-lanka powder ( 1/5 tsp ), thick tamarind juice ( 1- 2 tsp), salt to taste.

Preparation: Cut each slice of pineapple into 5-6 pieces.

Cooking: Heat 1 tsp oil in a wok. Add the turmeric, broken red chillis, mustard, fenugreek, cumin & fennel seeds. Add the pineapples pieces and sprinkle salt. Fry for 6-7 minutes till it softens.

Add about 1 1/2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Cover with a lid and allow to simmer for 7-8 mins. Add the tamarind juice at this stage and boil for 2-3 mins.

Heat 1 tsp of oil in a pan. Add asafoetida & curry leaves. Fry for 30 secs and pour over the contents of the wok. Sprinkle the jeera-lanka powder and boil for a minute.

Remove from stove and serve it with rice/puris.

Note: If the pineapple is a little raw, cook the slices in a pressure cooker for 2-3
whistles before frying.

Saru Chakuli

The Raja celebrations have come to an end and i still had some of the batter sitting in the fridge. After gorging on all sorts of stuffed pithas, i felt like making something light.

The first thing which came to my mind was the 'Saru Chakuli' or thin pancakes. However the batter was prepared for Buddha Chakuli( thick pancakes ) which has a higher proportion of black lentil. So, i decided to convert it into Saru chakuli batter (which has black lentil & rice in 1:2 proportion ) by adding a portion of whole wheat flour which also made it healthier.

The chakulis turned out to be delicious. Here's the recipe:

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

Ingredients: Urad dal ( 1/3 cup ), rice ( 1/3 cup ), whole wheat atta ( 1/2 cup ), ripe banana ( 1 no, small ), salt to taste, sugar ( 1 tsp ), oil for cooking.

Preparation: Soak the urad dal for 4-5 hours.

Wash and soak the broken rice for 10 mins. Drain all the water and ground into a fine powder.

Ground the urad dal with the rice flour and banana to get a smooth paste. Add wheat
flour, salt to taste and 1 tsp sugar , mix well and keep aside for 1-2 hours.

Cooking: Heat a non-stick pan. Take sufficient batter and spread into a layer about 3-4 mm thick. Sprinkle some oil on the sides.

Allow to cook on one side and then turn it over. Let it cook on the other side. Will
take about 4-5 minutes for a single chakuli.

Serve with milk or kheer.

Celebrating Raja Day 3 : (with) Buddha Chakuli

Cooking Time Required: 10-15 mins
Cost of preparation: 20-25 rupees

Ingredients: Urad dal ( dehusked, 1 cup ), broken basmati rice ( 1 cup ), ripe banana ( 1 no ), freshly grated coconut ( 1 cup ), chenna or ricotta cheese ( 1 cup ), sugar ( 6 tsp ), cardamon ( 3-4 nos ), peppercorn ( 6-7 nos ), salt, baking powder ( 1 pinch, not required if given 3-4 hours to ferment ), raisins ( 1/3 cup ), ghee.

Preparation: Soak the urad dal for 4-5 hours.

Wash and soak the broken rice for 10 mins. Drain all the water and ground into a fine powder.

Ground the urad dal with the rice flour, banana, 2 cardamons & the peppercorns to get a smooth paste. Add salt to taste and 1 tsp sugar , mix well and keep aside. Add the baking powder if you do not have time to ferment the batter.

Mash the chenna with 2 tsp sugar and cardamon powder ( 1 no ).

Cooking: Heat 1 tsp ghee on a pan. Add the raisins and fry till they swell up. Add the sugar ( 3 tsp ) & coconut at this stage. Fry for 5 min and sprinkle some cardamom powder ( 1 no ). Remove from the pan.

Heat 1/2 of ghee on the pan. Spread a layer of batter. Sprinkle the mashed chenna all over the pitha. Spread another layer of batter over it. Sprinkle the fried coconut over the batter. Top it with a final layer of batter.

Cover with a lid and cook on a low flame.















Turn it over to the other side when one side is done and cook it on both sides to a reddish color.















Serve it hot.

Celebrating Raja Day 2 : (with) Pura dia Idli

Cooking Time Required: 15-20 mins
Cost of preparation: 25-30 rupees

Ingredients: Urad dal ( de-husked, 1 cup ), rice rawa ( 3 cups ), coconut ( 1 no ),
powdered jaggery ( 4-5 tsp ), cardamon ( 3 nos ), ghee ( 1 tbs ), salt to taste.

Preparation: Wash and soak the urad dal for 5 hours. Grind into a smooth paste.

Soak the rawa for about 1-2 hours. Wash and drain completely. Add to the urad dal paste along with salt and keep aside for 6-7 hours. Do not let it become sour.

Grate the coconut and keep aside.

Cooking: Heat a pan. Add ghee followed with the jaggery and allow it to melt.

Add the grated coconut and stir fry for 5-6 mins. Sprinkle the powdered cardamon and mix well. Remove from the stove.

Grease the idli plates with a little oil. Pour a little batter into the holes. Add the coconut filling followed with more batter to cover it.

Put the idli plates inside the idli stand and steam for 12 minutes.

Remove the idlis and serve with ghee and sugar / Ghuguni / Chutney.