Kakinada Pomfret Fish Fry

Ingredients:
Pomfret fish slices - 1/2 kg

For grinding paste:
Cardamom - 2 pieces
Cinnamon - 1 inch piece
Clove - 2pieces
Pepper - 4 pieces
Coriander powder - 2 teaspoons
Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon
Ginger paste - 3 teaspoons
Garlic paste - 2 teaspoons

Marination:
Garam masala - 1.5 teaspoons
Ghee - 1/2 spoon
Curds - as required
Coriander powder - 1/2 spoon
Ginger Garlic paste - 1/2 spoon (optional)
Salt to taste

For frying:
Cooking oil - 1/4 cup

Steps:
1. Grind all the ingredients under "for grinding paste" in a blender to form a smooth paste with as little water as needed.
2. Marinate the fish along with the paste made in step 1, combined with the ingredients under "Marination" and marinate in refrigerator for 1 - 2 hours.
3. Shallow fry the marinated fish slices in a pan with oil as required.
4. Pomfret fish fry is ready.

Bangalore Iyengar Bakery Sandwich

Ingredients:

Bread - 10 slices
Carrots - 250 grams
Onion - 1 medium
Green Chili - 4
Lemon juice - 5 teaspoon
Oil - 2 teaspoons
Mustard - 1 teaspoon
Cumin - 2 teaspoons
Hing - 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 5
Salt to taste

Steps:
1. Prepare the ingredients by finely chopping the onions, green chilies and shredding the carrots.
2. In a wok, add oil for tempering. Add mustard, cumin, curry leaves and hing and allow them to crackle.
3. Add chopped green chilies, diced onions to the wok and cook till the onions are translucent.
4. Add grated carrots to the wok and add some salt to taste. Cook on medium flame with occasional stirring till the carrot is cooked. This could take approximate 7 to 10 minutes.
5. In the mean time, toast the bread slices (with or without butter as per your choice)
6. Add the carrot stuffing over the toasted bread and stack one on top of other. Allow it to rest for 20 minutes or more.
7. Enjoy the bread slices.

Hostel Moong dal with bread

Ingredients:

Tomatoes - 6 medium
Moong Dal - 1/2 cup
Garlic - 6 cloves
Onion - 1 medium
Green Chilli - 4
Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Oil - 2 teaspoons
Water - 4 cups
Mustard - 1 teaspoon
Cumin - 2 teaspoons
Hing - 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 5
Red chilli powder - 1/2 spoon
Salt to taste

Steps:
 1. In a pressure cook, add the soaked moong dal, chopped tomatoes, chopped onion, garlic,  chopped green chilies, pinch of turmeric, water, 1 spoon of oil and pressure cook for 3 whistles.
2. After the contents of the pressure cooker are cooked and moderately cooled, whisk the contents of the pressure cooker.
3. Prepare tempering with, a spoon of oil,  Mustard, Cumin, Hing, Curry leaves, Red chilli powder.
4. Add the tempering to the contents of the pressure cooker and add salt and optionally lemon juice and boil for 5 min.
5. Serve with slices of fresh bread.

Iskcon Bangalore Kichidi

This is my version of the prasadham that is served at the popular Iskcon temple in Bangalore.

Ingredients:
Moong dal - 1/2 cup
Rice - 1/2 cup
Oil - to temper
Green chilli - 2
Ginger - 1 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 5
Cumin seeds - 2 teaspoons
Mustard seeds - 2 teaspoons
Fennel seeds - 1 teaspoon
Hing - as per taste
Bay leaves - 2
Cardamom - 2
Water - 5 cups

Steps:
1. Soak the rice and moong dal together for 30 min.
2. In a pressure cooker, add oil to temper.
3. To the hot oil, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, hing, green chilli and allow them to crackle.
4. Add chopped ginger, curry leaves, bay leaves, cardamom and sautee (without burning the ingredients)
5. Add the soaked dal and rice, add turmeric and  water and cook for 5 whistles.
6. Once cooking in complete, open the pressure cooker add salt and lemon juice to taste.

Aloo Bread Tikki

This is an old recipe I learnt from my mother. But, with the following modifications:
 I have roasted the tikki on a pan, unlike my mother’s recipe where the tikki are deep fried in oil. This is obviously for health reasons.
 I have combined other vegetables like peas and carrot along with potato. My mother used only aloo. I felt adding vegetables make it more nutritious and filling.

Ingredients:

Potato – ¼ Kg
Carrot – 100 gms
Peas – 100 gms
Bread – 8 slices
Green Chilli paste – 1 teaspoon
Jeera – ½ teaspoon
Chat Masala – 1 teaspoon
Dry mango powder – ½ teaspoon
Turmeric – ¼ teaspoon
Salt – as required
Coriander – 2 table spoon (finely chopped)
Oil – 2 tablespoon

Method:
1. Boil the potatoes and chop them into small pieces. Chop carrots and boil them along with peas for 5 minutes.
2. In a pan add 1 teaspoon of oil add jeera followed by green chill paste. Roast for less than a minute. And add turmeric powder, along with the boiled and chopped potatoes, carrot and peas and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add 1 teaspoon of chat masala along with ½ teaspoon of dry mango powder (or lemon juice) and salt for taste. Cook the mixture for 1 minute. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and the filling is ready now.
4. Cut the crust/edges of the bread slice to retain the white portion. Dip the bread slice in a bowl of water for less than 2 seconds. Remove the bread slice from water and squeeze the water out.
5. Make small balls of the filling mixture (prepared in step 3).
6. Place the ball made out of the filling on slice of bread which has been prepared as mentioned in step 4.
7. Wrap the bread around the filling such that it is covered on all sides without any breakage. (Similar to wrapping a paratha in dough).
8. Slightly press the tikki to take the shape of a cutlet. This is not required if we were deep frying it in oil. As we are cooking it on a pan it is more convenient if the tikkis are shaped like cutlets.
9. Heat a pan and add a teaspoon of oil and cook the tikkis on the pan.
10. Serve with tomato ketchup or mint chutney.

Carrot Soup

Ingredients:
Onion – 1 Large
Carrots – 250 grams
Green Chillies – 1 nos
Ginger – 1 inch piece
Mint Leaves – 8 leaves
Coriander – 8 leaves
Fresh Cream – 1 tablespoon
Water – 3 cups
Salt and Sugar – as required
Pepper Powder – ¼ teaspoon
Butter – 2 teaspoon


Method:
1. Wash Carrots and chop into medium sized pieces.
2. In a clean muslin cloth tie green chillies, ginger, coarsely chopped mint and coriander leaves.
3. Heat a pressure cooker and add 2 teaspoons of butter.
4. Fry the chopped onion for 2 minutes in reduced flame.
5. Add 3 cups of water to the pressure cooker.
6. Add the chopped carrots and the spices tied in muslin cloth to the pressure cooker.
7. Pressure cook for 5 to 7 minutes.
8. Remove the cooker from the flame and allow it to cool.
9. Squeeze and discard the spice bag from the cooker.
10. Blend the contents of the pressure cooker in a food processor and strain.
11. Dilute with water and add salt along with sugar as required.
12. Heat till boiling point and add pepper powder.
13. Garnish with fresh cream and serve.

Chickpea Adai

This is a very good breakfast recipe as it is made of chickpea it will not make you hungry soon unlike the normal dosa.

Ingredients:

White Chickpea – 2 cups

Rice – 1 cup

Red Chilli – 6

Ginger – ½ inch

Salt – 1 ½ teaspoon

Onion – 2 medium

Coriander and Curry leaves – 1 tablespoon each

Coconut – ½ cup (grated)

Oil – ½ cup

Seasoning:

Asafoetida – 1 pinch

Oil – 1 teaspoon

Mustard – ½ teaspoon

Black gram dal -1 teaspoon

Bengal gram dal – 1 teaspoon

Method:

1. Soak the chickpea along with rice overnight (or at least for 6 hours and ensure to change the water after 3 hours)
2. Grind red chilli, ginger, salt along with the chick pea and rice to form a coarse paste.
3. To the chickpea paste add chopped onion, coriander and curry leaves and grated coconut.
4. For seasoning, add one teaspoon oil in a frying pan. Add the mustard seed, black gram and Bengal gram dal and Asafoetida to the hot oil.
5. Add the seasoning to the chickpea mixture.
6. Heat a pan and add a ladle full of the seasoned chickpea mixture at the centre and spread it to form a dosa, add one teaspoon of oil and cook the dosa on both sides till it is crisp.
7. Serve the adai with tomato ketchup or any of your favorite chutney.