Capsicum Onion Chutney | Thogayal

Capsicum is a flavourful vegetable. Also known as Bell Pepper, this vegetable has now taken an important place in cuisines worldwide. Added to a dish, it makes it colourful, flavourful and inviting.

How to select Capsicum :- It should be Firm, Glossy and well shaped. The stems should be looking green and fresh. Should be blemishless. Should be heavy.

We can make a wide variety of dishes using this vegetable, starting from humble sambar and khadi, it makes it's way into the continental , customised and fastfood dishes as well.

Sharing with you a simple and easy chutney using Capsicum with Onion which can make it an excellent side dish for Dosai, Idli and Rice.

Ingredients :-

Serves : 2 people

1. Capsicum (Bell Pepper) - 1/2 Cup
2. Onion - 1/2 Cup
3. Urad - 1 Tbsp
4. Red Chillies (Dried) - few nos.
5. Tamarind - few pieces
6. Salt to taste
7. Oil - 2 Tsp

Video Recipe is here :- 

Process :-

• Heat a wok, add 2 tsp oil and fry the tamarind and red chillies together till the chillies are roasted well and puffs up. Transfer to a plate to cool.

• Add whole Urad (Whole urad will roast evenly than the split ones). Fry till golden brown. Transfer to a plate.

• Add Capsicum and Onion, stir. Add salt, mix. Cover and cook till done, while stirring in between. Transfer to a plate.

• Let the friend items cool completely and then grind to a smooth paste (without adding water).

• Flavourful Capsicum and Onion chutney is ready!

Podi Pota Sambar - Using Sambar Powder

I have already shared the Traditional Sambar using freshly ground masala known as "Arachu Vitta Sambar" along with the History of the Dish "Sambar".

Today sharing the Powder version of sambar where sambar powder is used instead of freshly grinding the masala ingredients.

I have used Raddish | Mooli | Mullangi. This vegetable makes it more flavourful and irresistable to taste. After Onion Sambar, this stands next in the queue in terms of flavour.

Good to go with Rice, Chapathi, Dosai, Idli. You can adjust consistency as per your requirement.

The Video Recipe is here :- 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7wl378ltfw&t=24s

Ingredients :- 

1. Raddish or your choice of vegetables - 1/4 cup [diced]
2. Tamarind - 1/2 lemon size
3. Toor Dal - 1/4 cup
4. Turmeric powder - a pinch
5. Asafoetida powder - a pinch | solid asafoetida - a small bit
6. Sambar Powder - 2 Tbsp
7. salt to taste
8. Oil for tempering - 2 tbsp
9. Mustard seeds
10. Curry Leaves - few nos.

Process :-

• Boil tamarind in water and when it cools down, extract 1.5 cups of tamarind extract by adding required water.

• Pressure Cook Toor Dal adding few drops of oil (This prevents spilling) till stoft.

• Cook the vegetables adding turmeric powder, salt, asafoetida.

• Add the tamarind extract, bring to boil

• Mash the cooked dal, add sambar powder to it and mix well. 

• Add this to the boiling tamarind mixture and stir well till it blends well.

• Once foam forms on top, add the tempering. Sambar is Ready!!

Frozen Green Peas - Tip to store fresh peas for off season

It is winter time! Season for fresh Green Peas, Mustard green (Sarson ka Sag), Makkai Roti!

Green Peas brings a nice color to the dish it is added. But as they are seasonal and is available during winter season, we can store them in our freezer for the off season and use it all around the year.

Our ancestors used different methods viz., Pickling Preserve, Sun Dried etc for storing certain seasonal fruit / vegetable.

Sharing with you the way to store the fresh peas in frozen form for the off seasons (thanks to refrigerators!) to make your recipes always special!

Separate the pearls from the pea pod

Pour water in a vessel that is enough to immerse the peas.

Keep some cold water in another vessel as we may need it once peas are blanched to stop the cooking process.

Bring the water to boil and reduce the flame.

Put the peas in it and boil for exact two minutes.

Turn off the flame and drain the water immediately.

Add it to the cold water and leave it till the peas becomes cool.

Spread a clean towel and spread the Peas over it and let it dry.

Store in a ziplock pack and freeze it!

Tada! the Green Peas is ready for your off sesaonal usage!

Kada Prasad | Atte Ka Halwa

Kada Prasad | Atte ka Halwa is the Prasad made using whole wheat flour and is distributed in the Holiest Gurudwara - Darbar Sahib situated in the Holy City of Amritsar. Also known as Golden Temple.

The best flour to be used is "Whole Wheat Flour" that is freshly ground as it enhances the flavour. The Flour should be coarse so that it gives the exact texture as given in Gurudwara. However, we can also use the normal Whole Wheat Flour, that we use for making chapatis. Only the texture differs.

It is a simple recipe as only Four ingredients are there and also there is no sugar syrup consistency required. Only care is on roasting the Flour to right colour.  

 A video is also published in "Mira's Akshaya Patram". So you may also check there.

Ingredients  :-

1. Whole Wheat Flour - 1 Cup
2. Ghee - 1 Cup [Clarified Butter]
3. Sugar - 1 Cup
4. Water - 2 Cups

Procedure :-

• To a vessel, add sugar and 2 cups of water. Heat and dissolve the sugar. Just bring it to boil. No Syrup consistency required. Once it starts boiling, switch off the gas.

• Heat a wok and add Ghee [Clarified Butter] to it. Once the ghee has melted, add Whole wheat flour and keep stirring till it changes light brown in colour.

• Keep in low heat only as the color changes quickly once it reaches golden color and it may get burnt. So keep in low flame and keep stirring and watching the colour. 

• Once the light brown color comes, add the sugar water and keep mixing. It will quickly start thickening. Keep mixing in low flame only. 

• The moment you see ghee start oozing out lightly on the sides, immediately switch OFF the gas and transfer it to a plate. (No need to grease the plate).

• Delicious Kada Prasad | Atte Ka Halwa is Ready!

Notes :- If you are trying it for the first time, you can switch OFF the gas once the light brown colour is achieved during roasting of flour in ghee. Then add the sugar water, mix it and then switch ON the gas again. Start cooking in low flame only.