Spicy Horse Gram Curry/ Kulitha Ambat

Horse gram or kulith is often used in Konkani cuisine to make curries and dosa. Sprouting it increases the protein content and in Konkani's say consuming horse gram makes you fit as a horse. It is beneficial to reduce cold, cough and flue symptoms and helps in increasing energy and reducing fatigue. Pressure cooking this pulse makes it easier to cook. The sprouted horse gram is used to make Ambat and the soaked horse gram without sprouting is used to make Koddel. Ambat is a curry seasoned with onion and koddel is a curry seasoned with garlic. 

Ingredients
1 cup horse gram
1 cup cubed magge or konkani cucumber, yam (suran) or bottle gourd
1/4 cup cashew nuts (preferably raw cashew)
1/4 lemon sized tamarind
4-6 red chilies (preferably byadgi or kashmiri)
1 cup grated coconut
1 medium onion
1 tablespoon oil (preferably coconut oil)
salt for taste

Method

Wash horse gram well in water and soak it over night. Drain the water and put the horse gram in a thin muslin cloth and tie the ends of the cloth to make a bundle. Put some weight on the bundle using a stone or heavy vessel and keep aside for another 8 hours to allow the horse gram to sprout. 

Wash the horse gram sprouts well in water and pressure cook it with cubed vegetable till soft, but not mushy.

Roast the red chili on low flame for 3-5 minutes till it is crisp but not brown. Grind the chilies with the grated coconut and tamarind into a fine paste. Add the paste to the boiled sprouts and get it to a boil. Heat oil in a seasoning pan and add finely chopped onion to it. Fry the onion on low flame, sautéing continuously, till the onion is light brown and caramelized. Add the onion seasoning to the curry. Cover it for 5 - 10 minutes before serving to enable the flavor of the onion seasoning to infuse into the curry. Serve hot with rice.

Bhutti / Spicy Coconut Curry

Bhutti is a spicy Mangalorean curry made with the following combinations- mushroom, cabbage and cauliflower and potato, cabbage and potato, cauliflower and potato, potato, ivy gourd or tendli. I made it with cauliflower and potato combination in the photo. It is usually served with the bland dalithoy or dal. 

Ingredients 
3 cups chopped cauliflower and potato (you can select the vegetable quantity as desired)
3 medium onions
1 cup grated coconut
6-7 red chilies (byadgi or kashmiri with mild pungency prefered) 
1 teaspoon tamarind paste or 1/4 lemon sized tamarind
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
4 tablespoons oil (preferably coconut oil)
salt for taste

Method 

Fry the coriander seeds on low flame for 3-4 minutes till it is slightly heated. Take care so that it should not change color to brown. Grind the coconut, tamarind, chilies and coriander into a coarse paste. Traditionally, the coriander seeds are put in the end of the grinding process and only a pulse or two is run to ensure that the coriander is very coarsely ground. The paste should be ground with as little water as possible into a thick paste.

Heat oil in a pan and add chopped onions. Fry onion till transparant and ensure that it does not turn brown or caramelize. Add the cauliflower and cook covered. the cauliflower should be half cooked and not be mushy. Add the ground coconut paste and get the curry to a boil on very low flame for around 10-15 minutes. Serve hot with rice and dal. 

Azuki Beans Curry / Bagde Koddel / Lal Chori Curry

Koddel is a Konkani curry with garlic seasoning. Check the recipe of Avre Koddel . The base of this curry is azuki beans and an optional vegetable like raw banana, yam or leafy vegetable like malabar spinach is added. This curry is served as a side dish with dal and rice or directly with rice. 

Ingredients 

3/4 cup azuki beans
2 cups cut malabar spinach or 1 cup cubed yam or 1 cup potato or 1 cup Konkani Cucumber or Dosakai 1 cup raw banana or 1 cup cubed raw papaya
1 1/2 cup grated coconut
5-6 fried red chilies (preferably byadgi)
1/4 lemon sized tamarind or 1 teaspoon concentrate
6-8 small garlic cloves
1 tablespoon oil (preferably coconut)


Method 

Wash azuki beans well in water and soak for at least 8 hours. Wash well again and cook with one of the optional vegetables in pressure cooker till the beans are soft but not mushy. Roast the red chili in 1/2 teaspoon oil and grind into a fine paste with tamarind and coconut adding as little water as possible. Mix the paste with the boiled pulse and add 1 cup water or as desired if you feel the curry is thick. Get the curry to a boil. Heat the remaining oil in a seasoning pan and add peeled garlic cloves. Fry on very low heat till the garlic cloves are light pink in color. Add the seasoning to the curry and keep it covered for 5-10 minutes to enable the flavor of the seasoning to infuse into the curry. Serve hot with rice.

Sweet Potato Kheer/Kanaga Payasu

This Konkani sweet dish is a revised version of Mergol which is made in South Karnataka region. Mergol is a simple sweet dish made with sweet potato, jaggery. Sweet potato is very nutritious as it is rich in fiber and vitamins. 

Traditional Mergol recipe:
Ingredients
1 cup sweet potato cubed(can also be cooked with skin)
1/2 cup grated jaggery or desired
1/2 teaspoon powdered cardamom

Method 

Cook the sweet potato in 2 cup of water. Add jaggery to the cooked sweet potato. cook for 10-15 minutes on low flame till the jaggery has completely dissolved. Add water as per desired consistency. Add the cardamom powder. Serve hot. 

Sweet Potato Payasa:
Ingredients:
1 cup cubed sweet potato
1/2 cup jaggery
1 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 cup coconut milk (can be substituted with cow's milk)
1/3 thick semolina (mota rava)
2 tablespoon cashew nuts
1 tablespoon ghee

Method:

Fry the semolina in ghee till it is light brown. Add 1 cup water and cook the semolina till it is soft. Fry the cashew nuts in ghee and keep aside. Take care to ensure that no lumps are formed. Add jaggery and keep on low flame till the jaggery melts. Add cardamom powder. Remove from flame and add coconut milk to the kheer and stir well. Add the fried cashew nuts. Keep on very low fame for 3-4 minutes stirring continuously. Remove from heat and serve immediately. 

Konkani Dal/ Dalithoy

Dalithoy is the simplest dal made almost daily in a Konkani household. There are many variations to this dal. Additionally turmeric and coriander leaves can be added for further variations. Serve with a drop of ghee and serve with rice and you have a tasty meal ready.

Ingredients
1 cup toor dal or split pigeon peas
green chili 2-3
1 teaspoon mustard
5-7 karipatta or curry leaves
heeng
red chili
1 tablespoon coconut oil
salt for taste

Method
Wash the toor dal well with water. Add slit green chilies and 3 cups water and cook it in pressure cooker till soft. I usually discard the green chilies and whisk it well with a whisker. The green chilies may be added back in the dal or discarded as desired. Add water as per desired and get the dal to a boil. Heat oil in a seasoning pan and add mustard seeds. When they splutter, switch off heat and add asafoetida, curry leaves and red chili. Sit well and add to the dal. Add salt as per taste and serve hot with rice. 

Breadfruit Fritter / Jeev Kadgi Phodi

Bread Fruit fritters is considered a delicacy in Konkani households. Fritters, bhajiya and upkari (sabzi) is made from this bread fruit. Both fritters and sabzi are had as tea time snacks with tea or kasaya. Click here to see how bread fruit looks. 

Ingredients 

bread fruit

besan or gram flour 1/2- 1 cup as needed

pinch of heeng or asafetida

red pepper powder for taste

salt for taste

oil for frying

Method 

Cut the breadfruit depending on how many fritters you are preparing and keep the remaining part in the refrigerator. Skin the bread fruit and slice it as shown in the below picture. The central stem which extends into the fruit should be also removed.

Apply salt, red chili powder to the bread fruit slices and keep aside for 15-20 minutes. 

Mix water with the gram flour to make a thick paste of idli atta consistency. Add salt, asafoetida to the gram flour paste as per desired taste. Dip the bead fruit slices in the gram paste and fry it in hot oil on both sides till done. Serve hot as snacks or as a side dish with meals. 

Ridge Gourd Stir Fry/ Gosale Upkari

Ridge gourd or turai is a very healthy vegetable and is very cooling for the body. We make a very simple sabzi or upkari which is served with dal or sambar.

In this photo: Dal, Rice, Ghosale Upkari and plain Odi

Ingredients 
2-3 medium sized ridge gourds
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 green chili 
2 dried red chili or byadgi chili
3 tables grated coconut
1 tablespoon coconut oil or any other oil
salt for taste


Method

Peel the ridge gourd and chop it into 2 cm pieces. Heat oil in the pan and add mustard. When the mustard splutters add the red chili and slit green chili. Fry for a minute. Add the cut bottle gourd and saute it for a minute. Add 1/4 cup water and cook covered till the bottle gourd is soft. Add salt for taste and garnish with grated coconut. Serve hot with dal and rice. 

Gajar Ka Halwa /Gajara Halwo

Carrot halwa is very good way of including carrots in the diet. It is liked by people of all ages and is made by people in all parts of India. Carrot halwa can be made in a jiffy. Carrot halwa can be made with or without milk. The sugar quantity can be increased or decreased as per taste. 


Ingredients 
4 cups carrots grated
1 cup sugar or as desired
2 tablespoon raisins 
2 tablespoon cashew nuts
1 cup whole milk or 1/2 cup cream (optional)
2 tablespoon ghee




Method 
Heat 1 tablespoon ghee in a pan and fry cashew nuts till brown. Add the raisins and fry for a minute. Keep aside. Heat rest of the ghee in the same pan and add grated carrots. Fry for 5 minutes. Add milk and cook well till all the milk evaporates. Add sugar and cook again till it becomes thick as per desired consistency. Garnish with fried cashew nuts and raisins. Serve hot or chilled. 

Churmundo / Aate Ka Ladoo

Churmundo is whole wheat flour ladoo make in Konkani homes. It is loved especially by children and is very healthy for growing children. We make this for almost all the festivals. 


Ingredients 
1 cup wheat flour
2 tablespoon thin semolina or rava
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup ghee or clarified butter (Check HERE for recipe)
1 teaspoon cardamom or elaichi powder
2 tablespoon kishmish (optional)
2 tablespoon roasted cashew nuts or kaju (optional)


Method
Roast the semolina along with the wheat flour on very low flame till it is light brown and gives out  a pleasant aroma. It will take 15-10 minutes to roast both the ingredients. Heat the ghee to a liquid form and mix it with the roasted flour. Stir on low heat for a minute or two till the ghee is absorbed well by the flour. Mix the sugar and the cardamom powder well. I just put it in my mixer and give it a pulse or two till both the ingredients blend well together. Mix sugar, roasted flour, kishmish, cashew nuts well with your hands. Take a hand full of the mixture in your hands and press it to make the ladoos. Store in an air tight container. 
The above ingredients make around 10-15 ladoos depending on their size.

Kanda Batata Pova / Poha / Phovu

This is a very popular breakfast dish or snack in Maharashtra. We make pova very often for breakfast as it is healthy and filling. It is an easy to prepare and garnish it with a little sev or chooda, it makes a sleek breakfast. If you don't want to eat onions in the morning, you can skip adding it. 


Ingredients
1 medium potato
1 medium onion
4 tea cups or around 100-150 gm medium beaten rice (mota pova)
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf in Hindi)
2 tablespoon peanuts or fresh green peas
2 green chilies or as per taste
3 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon sugar
salt for taste
2 tablespoon oil


Method
Wash and soak the peanuts (if using) overnight or for at least 3 hours. Wash the beaten rice or pova well with water and drain the water. Mix salt and sugar with the pova as per taste.  Leave aside for 10-15 min. Chop the onion finely. Peel and chop the potato into desired sized cubes. Chop the green chilies finely. Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds. When they pop add the the fennel seeds and turmeric powder. Add chopped green chillies and fry till they are light brown. Add the chopped onion and fry till it is light brown. Add chopped potato and peanuts and mix it well with the seasoning. Add one cup water a pinch of salt and cook covered till the potato is soft. Add the pova or beaten rice and mix well. If the pova feels dry then sprinkle 2 handful of water over it and mix well. Adjust salt as per taste. Cook covered over low flame for 5-8 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and sev and serve hot.


Preparation time: 30 min
Serves: 2

Gardudde Ambat / Bottlegourd in Coconut Sauce

Ambat is a Manglorean curry which consists of the basic Masolu and vegetables. Masolu is a thick paste made with grated coconut, tamarind and dry red chiles.

Ambat may or may not contain lentils. Moong ambat, takka ambat consists of plain masolu or gravy. While others like valli ambat have toor dal or pigeon peas. I find the ones with lentils more healthier as less coconut is used to prepare the gravy. 

During religious festivals ambat is prepared with mustard and curry leaves seasoning. Some of the ones I have earlier posted are Mooga randayi/Ambat, karate ambat and takka ambat. Some ambat curries are seasoned with fried garlic while others are seasoned with fried onion. Valli ambat and papaya ambat are such curry. Another famous ambat is cauliflower and peas ambat which I will post later. 

Ingredients 
1 medium bottle gourd
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup toor dal or pigeon peas
1 teaspoon coconut oil or any other oil
salt for taste

For the gravy or Masolu:
1/2 cup coconut
1 inch piece of tamarind
1/2 teaspoon turmeric (optional)
5-6 byadgi chili or red chilies or as desired

Method
Peel the bottle gourd and chop it into one inch pieces. Pressure cook the bottle gourd with toor dal, onions, salt and 2 cups of water. Cook till the toor dal is well done. Stir the toor dal and vegetable with a ladle till the lentil is all mushy.
Fry the red chilies in a pan till they are crisp. Finely grind the red chilies along with grated coconut, tamarind, turmeric adding as little water as possible. Add this paste to the lentils and mix well. Add water as per desired consistency and get it to a boil. Fry the remaining chopped onion in the coconut oil till it is golden brown. Season the curry with the onions. Serve hot with rice.

Mangalore Prawn Curry / Sungta Masolu

Prawn is a delicacy and is loved by all Mangaloreans. Prawn curry is prepared by different ways all over the Konkan coast. In Maharashtra and Goa it is prepared with the spices like coriander, cumin and garlic. This recipe is a very traditional and simple recipe where the unique flavor of the prawns is not over powered by many spices. It is traditionally served with boiled rice and Mangalorean fish fry.  The flavor of the prawns increases as time goes along. It tastes better the day after it is made.It is a good idea to make this curry at least 2-3 hours before serving. 


Ingredients 
10-15 prawns
2 cups grated coconut
1/2 teaspoon tamarind concentrate or coin sized ball of tamarind
1 tablespoon coconut oil
8-10 dried red chillies (preferably byadgi chilly)
4 pinches of heeng or asafoetida
salt for taste


Method 
Fry the red chilies for 8-10 minutes on low flame till crisp. Grind the grated coconut, red chilies and tamarind into a very fine paste. De-vein and clean the prawns well. Put the prawns and the coconut paste in a deep bottomed vessel and cook covered for 8-10 minutes on low flame or till the coconut paste comes to a boil. Uncover the vessel and add salt as per taste. Cook for another 3-4 minutes. 
Add asafoetida in 2 tablespoon of water and mix it well so that it partially dissolves in water. Sprinkle this water over the curry and mix well. Immediately pour the coconut oil all over the curry and give it one good stir. Place the lid over the vessel and keep covered to enable the flavors of asafoetida and the oil to be absorbed well into the curry. Serve hot with boiled rice. 

Sweet Moong Dal Khichidi

This is another sweet khichdi which is made by my mom. She makes the moong dal khichidi and also the Sweet Chana Dal Khichidi as both are very healthy as they contain legumes or dals with high protein content. Many combinations can be used to prepare this dish. One can use 100% moong dal, or 100% whole moong, or 50 % basmati rice and 50% moong or moong dal. It turns out to be very tasty in any of the combinations. Whole moong needs to be soaked for 4-5 hours before making the khichidi. Here I have used 50 % basmati rice and 50% moong dal. I am sending this entry to Say "Thank You Mom" Event organized by Satya.  

Ingredients
1/2 cup moong dal

1/2 cup basmati rice

1 cup grated coconut

1 cup powdered jaggery
raisins and cashew nuts for garnish (optional)

1 teaspoon cardamom powder

2 tablespoon ghee

Method

Cook the basmati rice and moong dal in a pressure cooker or in a pan. The rice should only be cooked to 3/4th of its consistency and it should not be fully cooked. Keep aside till the rice cools down. In another pan heat ghee and add the nuts, raisins, jaggery and grated coconut. Mix well on low flame till both are combined well. Add the rice and moong dal to this mixture and mix well. Add cardamom powder and cook covered on low flame for 3-5 minutes. Serve hot with sliced banana slices and a teaspoon of ghee on top of the khichdi.

Kasay / Kasaya / Konkani Tea

We had been on a yoga retreat during thanksgiving and were discussing about kasaya being an alternative for tea or coffee. Kasaya(pronounced as Kah-sha-yah) was a regular feature at my grand parents home when I was growing up. Konkanis have this as a substitute to tea or coffee during breakfast or evening snacks. Both I and my sister loved kasaya always had it for morning breakfast and evening snacks. As we grew up we indulged in Boost, Complan, Bournvita and other powders but never got addicted to tea or coffee.

Coriander gives a boost to the digestive system and helps to cure indigestion, flatulence and gas. It is cooling by nature and cools down the acidity caused by overeating rich foods. It helps to stimulate lost hunger and helps to cure ulcers and stomach sores. Cumin seeds are rich in iron and help to cure digestive disorders. Fennel seeds are good to cure any digestive disorders and it is common tradition in India to have a pinch of fennel seeds after every meal. Kasaya is great to keep cough and cold away during the cold winters. Kasaya can be prepared with 1 part milk or 1/2 part milk and part 1/2 water. If you are a vegan it can be prepared just with water. 

Ingredients for Kasaya powder:
1 cup coriander seeds
1/2 cup fennel seeds
1/2 cup cumin seeds

Method 

Roast the seeds in a pan on low heat till they are crisp. Take care not to burn them. They can also be toasted in the oven. Completely cool the roasted seeds and grind them into a fine powder. I use a coffee grinder to grind my spices. Store in an air tight container. This powder stays good for 1-2 months but refrigeration can extend its life by another 2-3 months. But it is always good to prepare it on monthly basis to retain the original flavor of the spices. 

To prepare 1 cup Kasaya: 

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon of kasaya powder

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon sugar or any other sweetener

Method:

Put the water in a vessel and add the kasaya powder to it. Get it to a boil and add milk. Give it a stir or two and remove from heat. Keep the vessel covered for 3-4 minutes to let the flavor of the spices steep  into the kasaya. Strain the kasaya with a tea strainer. Add sugar as per taste and serve hot.

My Mom's Usal

 

We have always had a tradition of having a festive ("gad-da" in Konkani language) breakfast and lunch on Sundays. The breakfast menu would always be idli-sambar-chutney and lunch would start with fish or prawn fry and crab or any seafood curry or chicken biryani or chicken curry with rice. My mom also prepared a curry called "Usal" which goes very well with idlis. I have always preferred this curry to sambar. It is also very healthy as it is made with fresh peas.

But with all the health tips and health articles floating around on the internet advising on eating more of fat free food, we have simplified our food preparation living in US. Also with my hubby being a vegetarian we mostly prepare vegetables freshly bought from our local farmer's market. This weekend I decided to prepare my mom's rich curry which she specially prepares as a side dish to have with idli's. It also goes great with hot rice. This curry is more liquid-ish in nature and has very few vegetables, so it makes a great sauce to dunk hot idlis. It is a great alternative to the humble sambar and its spicy garlic flavor makes a great treat for any Sunday morning. So here is my mom's spicy Usal recipe.

Ingredients
2 cups green peas (frozen or fresh)

2 medium potatoes or 1 large one

2 medium onions

2 1/2 cups grated coconut

10-12 red chilies or as per taste

2 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon garam masala

coin sized ball of tamarind

1 whole garlic (10-12 cloves)

salt for taste

2 tablespoon coconut oil or any other oil

Method

Fry the red chilies for 8-10 minutes on low flame till crisp. Then fry the grated coconut for 5-10 minutes till it is slightly roasted and light brown in color. Roast the coriander seeds till light brown. Fry on low flame taking care not to burn the ingredients. Let the ingredients cool down.
Peel the onion and chop it into medium pieces. Peel the potato and chop it into 1 cm cubes. Microwave the peas if they are frozen. Boil the potato, onion and 1 1/4 cup peas in 2 cups of water. Boil till the potato is soft. Keep aside.
Now grind the roasted coconut, coriander, red chilies, tamarind, garam masala and 3/4 cup of peas into a very smooth paste adding 1 cup wate or more if required. Mix this paste with the boiled vegetables. Get the curry to a boil with more water if required. Salt the curry as per taste.

Peel the garlic cloves and crush them very slightly. Heat oil in a pan and fry the garlic on low flame till it is light brown. Add this seasoning to the curry and cover the curry for 10-15 minutes so that the flavor of the seasoning is absorbed by the curry. Serve hot with idlis or with rice.

Pathrado / Konkani Patra / Colocasia or Taro Leaf rolls

Patrado is a Konkani delicacy made with Taro leaves or Patharade paan. It is found in abundance during the rainy season and is grown in backyard kitchen gardens in south India. People in Hawaii also consume  lot of taro leaves and the leaves grow there in abundance all year round due to the unique climate.In Bay area you can find taro leaves occasionally at Indian stores. Taro leaves are available year round at the San Francisco farmer's market and at King's Seafood in Sunnyvale. 

There are various different recipes for making pathrado. I use 100% moong dal for the stuffing. Other variations are 1) 100 % whole moong 2) 75% whole moong or moong dal and 25 % rice 3) 50 % toor dal and 50 % rice 4) 50 % chana dal and 50% rice 5) 25 % chana dal 25 % moong dal and 50 % rice. My mom would prepare it with chana dal and rice in the past but of late she prepares it with moong dal and rice as moong is much lighter on the tummy than chana dal. 

Taro leaves can cause itching in the hands while handling them due to the calcium oxalate. This can be avoided by rubbing hands with tamarind juice before handling taro leaves. I didn't get any itching while handling the ones from King's Seafood though I cannot say the same about the ones we get in India. Pathrado is also garnished with coconut oil to prevent itching in the throat. The secret to tasty pathrado also lies in using tender or young taro leaves as opposed to larger taro leaves.

Pathrado makes a great combination with rice and bland dal or dalitoy. When I was a kid I would relish it with "duddh-sheet" (milk mixed with rice in Konkani). These are the photos from when my mom made pathrado during my last India trip. 

 

Ingredients
10-15 patra leaves

2 cups moong dal or use the pulse and rice combination mentioned above

1 teaspoon tamarind concentrate or half lemon sized piece of tamarind

1 tablespoon jaggery or gur

1 cup grated coconut

pinch of asafoetida

10-15 byadgi red chilies or as per taste

salt for taste

coconut oil for garnishing

Method

Wash and soak moong dal or the desired pulse-rice combination for 4-5 hours. Roast the red chilies on slow flame till crisp. Take care not to burn the chilies. Wash and clean the taro leaves. Gently remove the veins found on back of these leaves with a sharp knife. 

Drain the soaked moong dal  or the pulse-rice combination you are using, and grind it into a smooth paste with jaggery, tamarind, coconut, asafoetida and red chilies.  use as little water as possible to make a paste of thicker consistency. Add salt as per taste.

To make the pathrado take the pathrado leaf and keep it back side up on a plate or "taat" in Konkani. Spread the paste on the leaf.



 If the leaf is small you can keep two leaves side by side.




Keep adding leaves and spreading the mixture until you have around 6-8 leaves depending on the size. The idea is to use as many leaves as possible, but also keep room to fold the leaves into a roll.

When the second set of leaves are added on the lower set place them upside down (see the above photo and the one below). It helps to roll the leaves with ease.







 When the mixture has been spread on the leaves it is time to roll the pathrado. First roll the sides towards the center.

 

Then roll it from bottom to top.





 Place the roll in a steamer (Pedavan in Konkani) or the pathrado can be steamed in a pressure cooker without using the weigh.




Steam it for around 25-30 minutes till it is well cooked. Undercooked pathrado can cause itching in the throat. Cut the roll into 1/2 inch slices and garnish well with coconut oil. 




Remaining pathrado can be shallow fried the next day with rice powder mixed with chili powder. This makes great pathrado phodi.

Mangalore Goli Baje

Goli Baje is another of traditional Mangalorean speciality equivalent to Kanda baje in Maharashtra and pakode in North India. Hence it is very popular in Udupi region which has many temples. Goli Baje does not contain rice, onion and garlic and yet tastes great.  It can also be considered upwas or fast food. Goli baje like any fried snacks, should be consumed immediately when it is hot or else it becomes soggy and loses its crispiness. I serve it with coconut chutney and the recipe follows after the goli baje recipe.
 

Ingredients  
1 cup maida or all purpose flour
1 tablespoon besan or chick pea flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2-3 green chilies or as per taste
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1/2 cup curd or yogurt
1 tablespoon sugar or as per taste ( I like them a little sweeter)
1/2 teaspoon jeera or cumin powder

4 tablespoon finely chopped coriander leaves or cilantro
pinch of pepper powder
4-5 curry leaves
salt as per taste
oil for frying

Method 

Sieve the flour, besan, salt and baking soda. Add ginger, chopped green chilies, curry leaves , cumin powder, and sugar to the yogurt and give it a pulse or two in the blender. Take care not to make a smooth paste of all the ingredients mixed in the yogurt. Mix the yogurt paste with the flour. Add water if required to make a thick paste. The consistency should be thinner than roti dough and thicker than the idli batter. Add coriander leaves, pepper powder and adjust salt and sugar. Heat oil in a pan and drop "grape-sized" batter in the hot oil. Fry till golden brown on both sides. Serve hot with coconut chutney.

Coconut Chutney
Ingredients:
1/2 cup sliced or grated coconut
1/2 teaspoon tamarind concentrate or small piece of tamarind
1 tablespoon sugar
pea sized piece of ginger
3 green chilies or as desired
salt for taste

Method
Add as little water as possible to the above ingredients to make a smooth paste.

Happy Ganesh Chaturthi

Vaina Pooja 2010

My first Vayana Pooja

Godu Pova

Wishing you all a very happy Ganesh Chaturthi. 

We also celebrate Gowri pooja or Vayana/ Vaina pooja before Ganesh Pooja (Chavati in Konkani). Gowri is also known as Ganesh's mother and Lord Shiva's wife. For the Gowri pooja we use coconuts to symbolize the goddess. The coconuts are soaked in turmeric water to purify and then all the fiber is scrapped off the coconuts to smoothen the surface. Then it is marked with chalk or wet rice powder with a circle mid way around the coconut. I decorate the coconut with haldi and kumkum but traditionally they are decorated with sindhoor on the mouth of the coconut and sandal wood paste in between the two eyes. Kajal is applied to the eyes of the coconut and they are decorated with flowers. My garden flowers came handy to decorate my Gowri's :) I got the gowri puja samagri from the Indian store. It consists of black bead magalsutra, the red colored mangalsutra thread, comb, bangles, mirror and haldi and kumkum. The diyas are placed on top of the coconut, but due to the carpets in my home, I place them in a separate plate. I chant the 108 names of Gowri as mantra and with every name chant a pinch of rice and flowers is sprinkled as offering. After the Gowri puja, Lord Ganesh is worshiped. 

I made godu pova as offering to Gowri and Ganesh. It is very similar to Panchkadayi, but a lot simpler to make. We don't make this in my home and this recipe was given to me by one of my good friends C when she made this for her son's birthday.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup jaggery or gur

1 cup grated coconut

1 teaspoon powdered cardamom

2 cups thin pova

Method:

Cut the jaggery into small pieces. Heat the jaggery in a pan with 4 teaspoon water till the jaggery melts. Cool it completely and add the cardamom and coconut. Mix well and add the pova in 2 or 3 batches. 

Mix the pova well into the jaggery so that all the pova is coated with the jaggery. 

Curd Curry/ Takka Ambat

I tasted this curry at my friend C's home and I got this recipe from her. This ambat is another twist to the normal "Randayi" or coconut curry made in a typical Konkani home. Ambat means "sour" in Konkani and curd is added in the end to give this curry a tangy taste.

Alsando or chawli (long beans), raw banana, magge (also called Konkani cucumber or lemon cucumber), ashgourd (called kuvale in Konkani and petha in Hindi), yam or suran and ghosale (ridge gourd) can be used to make this curry. Which ever vegetable is on hand can be used individually or in a combination with the other vegetable. I used raw banana and long beans to make this curry.

Ingredients

1 cup vegetables cut in cubes (choose from the above mentioned vegetables; I used raw banana and long beans)

 1 cup grated coconut

 1/2 cup curd or yogurt

3-4 red chilies (byadgi or kashmiri chili will give the curry a rich red color)

4 pea-sized piece of tamarind or 1/4th teaspoon tamarind concentrate

1 1/2 tablespoon coconut oil or any other oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

5-8 curry leaves or karipatta

1 teaspoon jaggery or gur or 1 teaspoon sugar

Method 

Boil or pressure cook the vegetables in a little amount of water and a pinch of salt. Fry the chilies in 1/2 teaspoon oil. Grind into a fine paste with tamarind, jaggery and coconut using as little water as possible. Mix the paste with the boiled vegetables and get the curry to a boil. Mix curd with water need to get the curry to a desired consistency. Remove any lumps in the curd. Add the curd to the curry and salt the curry as per taste. 

Cook on low flame for another 2-3 minutes. 

Seasoning:

Heat coconut oil in a seasoning pan and add mustard. When the mustard starts to splutter, switch off the gas and add curry leaves. Stir and add it to the curry. Cover the curry for 5 minutes so that the flavor from the seasoning gets infused into the curry. Serve hot with rice. 

Peanut Chutney / Moongfali Chutney

Peanut chutney is another of my mom's speciality dishes. This chutney is heavily influenced by Maharashtrian cuisine and it uses peanuts as its main ingredient instead of coconut. It is ready within minutes when one doesn't want to spend time grating coconuts. It goes well with spicy dosas (Indian crepes), rava idli, rava upma and I specifically love to have this with sabudana khichdi. I am re-posting this post sending this recipe to My Legume Love Affair hosted by Sra and Susan.

Ingredients
1 cup roasted peanuts
1 teaspoon chana dal
1 tablespoon grated coconut (optional)
1 teaspoon oil
small piece of tamarind (size of 2 peas )
3-4 tablespoon coriander leaves
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
pinch of asafoetida
5-6 curry leaves
2-3 thai green chilies/ 1/2 Jalapeno or as per taste
salt for taste

Method
Fry the chana dal on low flame till light brown. Roast the peanuts till crisp and brown on all sides.
Grind all ingredients except mustard, oil, curry leaves and asafoetida into a fine paste with as little water as possible. Season the chutney with mustard, curry leaves, asafoetida.