Chana Dal In Jaggery Sweet Dish (Chana Dal & Kaju Madgane/ Mangane)

Ugadi or Gudi Padwa or Sanvsaar Paadvo is an auspicious occasion for all Hindus. In my home, we refer to this day as Sanvsaar Paadvo or Yugadi. Yugadi implies = Yug (era) + Aadi (beginning) = Beginning of an era [Source - Wiki]. For us, there is huge amount of preparation for this festival day. The previous day the entire house is cleaned, prepared and decked up for the festival.

The important contraptions in the house are cleaned, tied with Paddy stalks (called as Navve Bandoochey in Konkani). This signifies the harvest which is reaped and the joy of embracing the produce and giving it, its due importance in the household. Most of the time, we used to source the Paddy stalks from the local farmers. Previous day, Mom used to incessantly sit and finish stitching the containers for Khotte, made from Jackfruit leaves and stitched together with dried curry leaves stem. Essentially, breakfast comprised of Khotte-Chutney. I recall from early morning, Mom used to slog in the kitchen, while I used to pitch in with some help here and there. Before breaking the fast, we used to treat ourselves with Bella-Bevu: Neem Leaves known as Bevu in Kannada language and Jaggery known as Bella in Kannada. Luckily, we had a Neem sapling in our house garden. Mom used to saute the Neem leaves in ghee and we all used to eat chunks of Jaggery and crunchy Neem leaves before breakfast. As much as I hated it as a kid, now I understand the religious sanctity of these rituals.

Lunch would typically comprise of Rice (Sheet), Lentils (Daalithoi), Side dish (Tendle-Bibbe Upkari), Salad (Toushey Hullal), Curry (Tendle-Bibbe Daali Aambat), Fritters (Phodi of choice - Breadfruit, Bitter Gourd, Kantola) and the final icing on the cake - sweet dish or dessert - Madgane which is Chana Daal cooked with Jaggery and Cashew nuts. The entire day diet is observed with No Garlic and Onion rule.

Apart from all the regular Yugadi dishes, I made Madgane because its a traditional sweet dish which we make at home on the occasion of Yugadi. In Goa, this dish is known as Mangane. This was my sweet little way to connect to our traditions in a far away land. These are little things which connect you to your roots, keep you more grounded, in sync with your past. Needless to say, we enjoyed the festival food.

On a separate note, my first ever guest post made an appearance on Deepa's food site: www.foodlyrics.com

You can check my guest post on a Konkani recipe on: South Canara GSB Konkani ~ A Daily Vegeterian Meal. Click here for the essay which explores the nuts and bolts of a daily vegeterian meal followed by a recipe on Raw Jackfruit Fry - Kadgee Phodi. Thanks Deepa for giving me an opportunity to write on an essay on a cuisine which is so dear to me and my family. I really appreciate the gesture of goodwill. What better way than have lots of Food loving individuals bonding over a healthy chatter of food, produce, spices and stories related to food.

Happy Gudi Padva/ Yugadi to all!!

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:
Chana Daal or Split Dalia - 1 1/2 cups
Jaggery (molten or broken into pieces) - 1 cup
Cardamom powder - 6-8 pods
Rice flour - 2 tablespoon
Coconut thick milk - 1 cup
Grated coconut - 1 cup
Coconut thin milk - 1 cup
Water - as per consistency


Method:
Grind grated coconut with water and extract coconut milk. The first extract is thick and known as thick milk, the second and third extracts are thin milk. Set aside.
Soak Chana Dal and Cashew nuts in water overnight for 8-10 hours. Next day pressure cook them for 4-5 whistles. In a deep dish pan, cook Chana Daal with Jaggery. Once jaggery melts completely and the mixture is an even consistency, add the thin milk and stir gently. Take care to ensure the mixture does not stick the bottom of saucepan.
Bring to boil, and add thick coconut milk towards the end. Adjust the taste and consistency of water as per requirement. Bring to a complete boil, check if cooked and turn off the flame. Garnish with lot of cardamom powder. It enables in balancing the sweet texture of jaggery with a little spicy flavour. Serve hot or chilled as per choice.

Horsegram and Chinese Cucumber Curry in Spicy Coconut Gravy (Kulitha Koddel with Magge)

Horse gram or Kulitha or Kulthi as its called in Konkani is a powerhouse of nutrition and goodness. This is a lesser known variety and I have seen very few families cooking it nowadays. This bean is cooked quite a lot in my home due to the health properties Horse gram empowers one with. Rich in iron, this is a very heat enduring bean. Ideal to eat during winters, the bean keeps the body warm, but should not be eaten in excess as well.Owing to the heat enduring nature of this bean, its always paired with a cooling vegetable to complement in my house. This was Granny's logic to combat and balance the vegetable and their natural properties and the generations to come have been following it for years now. The bean enables in elimination of kidney stones. I found them here in Asian grocery stores and they go by the name of "Kulthi". Chinese Cucumber or Magge you find in US are much smaller and all yellow in color.

In olden days, the boiled stalk remaining after boiling the beans was offered to cows, cattle reared at home and horses as a fodder. This stalk offered strength and stamina to the bones and made them more strong. I save the boiled stalk for next day to enjoy simple "Saaru". The broth has to be boiled till it thickens and then seasoned with sauted garlic and red chillies. Some even address it as Kulitha Kadi which is finding lot of local popularity as a healthy beverage served during weddings and family get together now. I found this cool when I came to know for a cousin's wedding this was served as a soup based welcome drink.

The curry is cooked along with different vegetable combinations like Horse gram and seasonal vegetables like Chinese Cucumber (Magge), Chinese Potato (Kooka), Drumstick (Shengaa) or Malabar Spinach stems (Bhaaji Dentu). The curry with Garlic seasoning is called "Koddel", if done with pulses its termed as "Bendee". I also came across another interesting theory for naming the curries; my cousins informed me that coconut-red chillies-tamarind based curries cooked with pulses, beans are termed as Bendee in Mangalore and Koddel if you are from Udupi. Its so fascinating knowing how our cuisines originate and the finer change which the cuisine undergoes with a subtle change in geography and locations. I am simply awed!

Preparation time: 3-4 hours for soaking the beans

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Horsegram or Kulith - 1 1/2 cup

Chinese Cucumber or Magge (chopped with skin on) - 1 1/2 cup

Grated coconut - 3/4th cup

Red Chillies - 4-5

Tamarind pulp - 1 teaspoon

Salt - As per taste

Coconut Oil - For frying

Garlic (crushed) - 4-5 pods

Method:

Pre-soak the beans in water for 3-4 hours. Pressure cook for 2 whistles or till the bean is completely cooked along with chopped Chinese cucumber pieces. Along side, roast red chillies and allow to cool. Grind to a paste along with grated coconut and tamarind. Bring to boil the beans and chopped cucumber, add ground paste and adjust salt and water. Simmer on low flame for 10-15 minutes till its completely cooked. In a separate pan, heat coconut oil, saute crushed garlic in it and pour this seasoning on the curry and cover the lid. Serve warm along with rice as a side dish.

Tip: Crush the garlic alongwith skin for better flavour to the curry. Horsegram is a tricky bean, sometimes even after soaking it could under boil or get mushy or overcooked, use your discretion and watchful eye while cooking the bean. The boiling point for the bean depends on various factors influenced by rain, time of harvest of crop, soft water or hard water quality. For better flavour, retain the skin of Magge or Chinese Cucumber. Its more flavourful if skin is retained.

Sprouted Desi Chori Beans Curry in Spicy Coconut Gravy (Kirla-ailey Bagde Aambat)

Kirla-ailey Bagde Aambat or Sprouted Desi Chori Beans in Spicy Coconut Gravy is an epic dish amongst Konkanis. The reason I term it as epic because this dish is one of its kind, the sprouting process takes around 4 days, which means it requires great deal of planning. The sprouts have to be peeled off the skin; this is a painstaking process and used to demand lot of "distribution of labor". In my house, each of us were given our share and we were supposed to peel off the skin so that the burden does not fall on one person. No wonder the dish tasted really well, after all it was hard work contributed from everyone!

Kirla-ailey Bagde or Chori Beans in Konkani implies Sprouted Beans; Kirla in GSB Konkani implies sprouts, hence sprouted Chori Beans. This is a local delicacy loved a lot by all my family members. Although its quite difficult to finish the sprouting and peeling process, the taste makes your forget all the hard work required for this dish. The beans can be found at Asian stores across US.

The first day once you soak the Bagde beans (konkani term for Desi Chori beans) in water for 8 hours till they swell up in size. Remove them from water, keep in a warm oven and leave for the night. Next day you would see the seeds swollen up, all plump and thick. Soak them again in water for 8 hours. During the night, drain the water and keep the Beans in a warm oven or on a warm stove top. Next day around you will notice long sprouts shooting out of the centre point of the bean. Keep them out for the day to allow the sprouting to complete. Before you begin use, keep them in water again for 3-4 hours for the skin to come off. Once ready to peel, drain water completely and peel them off the brown skin. Throw away the skin, retain the white plumpy bean. Some of them will not sprout and they are aptly termed as Chor Bagdo or the sproutless ones. I enjoy Garlic Usal with Goda Masala or Saaru with Garlic tadka of the sproutless ones. Both taste nice. Retain or discard Chor Bagdo as per choice. Discard the peeled skin. Cashew nuts and Onion seasoning provide the extra zing to the dish.

Preparation time: 120 minutes of peeling off the brown skin of Chori Beans

Cooking time: 45 minutes for curry

Ingredients:

Desi Chori Beans or Bagdo - 2 cups

Onions (finely chopped) - 1/2 cup + 1/3 cup for garnishing

Cashew nuts (chopped) - 1/2 cup

For the Gravy -

Red Chillies - 3-4

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Tamarind pulp - 1 teaspoon

Salt - As per taste

Oil - For frying

Water - For gravy consistency

Method:

Boil the white beans which are peeled off the brown skin with onions in water good enough to soak the beans (approx. 1:1 ratio). Once cooked completely, grind the gravy ingredients and add to the curry. Add chopped cashew nuts bits as well. Bring to a boil and simmer of low flame for 10 minutes. Pour a seasoning of onions chopped, sauted and caramelised in oil on the curry. Serve hot with Urad-Rice dosa or plain white Rice.

Punjabi Rajma

I have begun to cook North Indian food of late, thanks to my dear husband who is quasi self-proclaimed Punjabi and relishes Punjabi food quite a lot. My North Indian cooking has never crossed the boundary of good old Punjabi Chole. In hindsight, I am glad I am doing so because its exposing me to the goodness and simplicity of so many North Indian dishes that I feel - I should have begun long back. I have Lucknowi recipes which boast of the succulent Keema Kebabs and Awadhi Biryanis. The Kashmiri fare which the 'yakhee' style of cooking; Amritsari Kulchas and Amritsari Macchi which is much talked about. Hey, I cannot afford to miss Delhi here, the land of history where umpteen battles have been fought, given birth to many a stalwarts. Paratha-Chanaa on Delhi-Gurgaon road, Mathree with Imli chutney and the good old Rajma-Chawal.

So my kitchen has stealthily amassed Kasuri Methi powder, Rajma (canned ones), Stuffed Parathas, Delhi Namkeen Parathas. This from a time when we used to eat the good old lentil-packed Sambhar and Rice along with crispy fried Poppadum and Appalams. Life teaches you so many times in so many ways. I have embraced it with open arms and rightly so. One of my dear friend recently threw her pearls of wisdom and some she aptly dusted on me - Food is a noble way of expressing your love. I cannot agree more with that. A transition is always great if embraced with open arms and taken positively.

I came across Sanjeev Kapoor's recipe for Rajma Rasmisa. Made few changes in the proportion, toned down the spices. I used semi-tangy tomatoes, those less red ones which offer a good flavour unless you want the Rajma a little more sweeter, in that case you could use the plump red ones. Thanks to Sanjeev Kapoor, I felt I was in Delhi, taking nonchalant walks around Karol Bagh, shopping at Sarojini market and tucking in some yummy fare from the lip-smacking dishes of Old Delhi.

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

Rajma or Red Kidney Beans - 1 1/2 cup or 1 can of Red Kidney Beans

Onions (finely chopped) - 2

Tomatoes (finely chopped, preferably the plump red ones) - 2

Corainder powder - 1 teaspoon

Cumin powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Red Chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Oil - For frying

Salt - As per taste

Turmeric powder - Just a pinch

Garam Masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Bay leaves - 2-3

Method:

Pressure cook Rajma Beans in water with little salt till are well cooked, soft and tender to eat. I used canned Red Kidney Beans. They are ready-to-use for gravies and curries.

In a deep dish saucepan, heat 2-3 tablespoon of oil, add bay leaves, once the oil gets the bay leaf aroma, add the onions and saute them till they are well fried. Add tomatoes and mash the gravy lightly with hand to get a saucy consistency. Add add the spice powders, adjust salt and garam masala powder and cook till the oil leaves. This is essential as the gravy forms the base for the flavour. Once done, add cooked Rajma and bring to boil. Simmer on low flame for 15 minutes. Turn off the flame. This dish goes extremely well with Rice.

Notes: Rajma can also be made with canned Tomatoes in a puree-d form. I prefer the home cooked ones so I added tangy ready-to-use tomatoes which offer a good flavour.

Punjabi Chole

Nupur's Recipe Marathon - Day 4

Its Day 4 and I am elated. I got to know about so many nice blogs, bloggers and food writers on the blog scene. Its going great. Best part was the way bloggers cajole and motivate each other irrespective of timezones, tastes, choice of food. Thanks Nupur for hosting this event!

More often than not, if I go by statistics and patterns, I tend to eat loads of Punjabi Chole during winter. Well, this was just a silly observation. Come winter, its time for cakes and bakes, soups and warm finger food, spicy and chaat items. I had bought a packet of Garbanzo beans or Chickpeas a month back. There were still lying neatly in my Foodgrains rack begging to be used. I am on a pantry cleaning spree, so want to work towards optimising my resources and capitalise on all what I can benefit from (Now that's a little Management style of thought delivery). We both wanted a "proper" dinner. That's the term P uses when he wishes to be adamant about tagdaa khaana. I soaked the Chickpeas in the morning, since time was less vis-a-vis overnight conventional soaking for 10-12 hours I dropped in a pinch of baking soda and soaked in warm water (Mom's valuable tips come handy during such times).

This is the method I adopt to make Chole, the shortcut method with the basic tomato-onion-ginger gravy, a tea bag dipped in Chole for the blackish color and all the masala's required under the sun. This time around, I decided to settle for the authentic brown color and omit tea bag. I had Everest Chole Masala, just a few spoons left. Thought would use them as well. I also liked several versions of Chole, one of Srivalli's and the other of Anita's. Both are nice and quite authentic.

Preparation time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

Chickpeas or Garbanzo Beans - 2 cups

Onions (chopped) - 2 onions (large)

Tomatoes (chopped) - 1-2 tomato (medium)

Ginger (grated or minced) - 1" piece

Oil - For frying

Everest Chole Masala or any other brand - 2 teaspoons

Everest Garam Masala or any other brand - 1/2 teaspooon

Red Chilli powder - 1/3 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - Just a pinch

Salt - As per taste

Green Chillies - 2

Baking soda - a pinch

Tea Bag (optional) - 1

Water - For curry consistency

For Garnishing:

Cilantro (chopped) - 6-8 sprigs

Onions (chopped) - 1 small onion or 1/3 cup

Method:

Pre-soak Chickpeas in water for 10-12 hours. If you forgot just the way I did, then plonk a cup of chickpeas in warm water with baking soda and leave for 6-8 hours. Wash the chickpeas thoroughly to eliminate any traces of soda and pressure cook for 20 minutes with salt, tea bag and one teaspoon oil. Once done, smash them lightly and leave aside. The Chickpeas would be salty and blackish at this stage.

Heat oil in a pan. Fry grated ginger and green chillies and thereafter add onions and tomatoes. Fry, fry and keep frying till they wilt, turn more translucent and ooze out oil. Add the masala's and Turmeric powder at this stage and adjust salt and water as per requirement. I like my Chole little thick with no-running gravy on the plate. Bring to boil and simmer on low flame for 5-10 minutes. Turn off flame and garnish with chopped cilantro leaves and onions. You could also add the garnish while serving on individual plates. Serve with Rotis or Pooris on side.

Note: Garnishing with Onions renders a unique aroma and taste. Add the tea bag while boiling Chickpeas, you will get restaurant style Chole which is blackish and bit bitter-y. My proportions are very low on spice, increase or decrease proportion as per taste and requirements. Use Indian Red Onions, do not use Spanish Onions or White Onions if you wish for that authentic Punjabi flavour.

Red Lentils Tadka Daal (Masoori Thoi/ Masoor Thove)

One of those lets-kill-time conversations with my favorite aunt S, I realised she is a treasure trove of recipes. I am not kidding. She dons the prized chef hat ala "Best Cook" in my maternal side. I cannot agree more with the jury and the critics. She dishes out restaurant style dishes and hold your breath, they are not limited to **Konkani** alone. She rattles off recipes from North to South, East to West, understands food science and nutrition, can cook a banquet for 50+ people without hiccups, knows many a rare cuisines which even the most knowledgeable ladies of my family fail to recognise and fathom.

She informed me about this quick and easy way of cooking Masoor Daal especially when you want the side dish in 20-30 minutes flat. Masoor Daal is sparingly cooked in our household when I was a child, it is believed to cause joint pain if consumed in excess. Red Lentils cook faster and hence works well for less than 30 minutes cooks. I tried this recipe, very similar to Daali Thoi, flavour is much milder and sharpened a wee bit with Red Chillies tadka. Thanks Aunty! You are the best!!

Preparation time: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients:

Red Lentils (Masoor Split lentils) - 2 cups

Red Chillies - 2-3

Salt - As per taste

Lime juice - 2 teaspoon

Oil - For seasoning

Water - For boiling lentils

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Mustard seeds - 1/2 t - For seasoning

Method:

Wash the lentils multiple times till water is clear and non-cloudy. Bring to boil in thick bottomed saucepan, once done mash the daal fervently. This takes around 10 minutes. Adjust salt. Pour a seasoning of mustard seeds and curry leaves and serve hot with lime juice.

Chickpea Curry in Coconut paste with Yam (Kaabuli Chaney Ghashi with Sooran)

Ghashi is a very popular coconut based curry. I used Kaabuli Channa or Chickpea and Yam called as Sooran in Konkani. Some even make Ghashi with Black Horsegram. I like the sublime taste and flavour of Chickpeas swimming in spicy coconut paste with red chillies. Most of the Konkani dishes make use of Coconut paste made of Red Chillies, Tamarind and Coconut (Grated). The flavours are very delightful and this dish serves as a One Pot Dish since the gravy suffices for the main curry and the vegetables (phodis) serve for good bites.

One can also omit the Turmeric powder, if one desires for a brownish tinge to the dish and add some Fenugreek seeds/ Methi seeds while grinding. This renders a brownish shade to the dish.

In Konkani custom, we make different types of Ghashi - Chaney Ghashi (Chickpea), Vataaney Ghashi (Green Pea), Aaavrekalu Ghashi (Hyacinth Beans), Tingalore Ghashi (Northern Beans).

Serves ~ 10-15 servings

Recipe ~ As suggested my Mom with slight changes in spice proportion

Ingredients:

Chickpea - 1 cup

Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup

Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon

Red Chillies (Byadgi Chillies preferred) - 6-8

Tamarind - 1" small pieces or 2-3 teaspoon sauce

Yam (Sooran) - 6-10 pieces

Oil - For frying

Salt - as per taste

Tempering:

Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Oil - for frying

Method:

Pre-soak Chickpea or Chanaa in water overnight for around 8-10 hours. Next day morning, boil in pressure cooker with little salt and set aside. Extract vegetable stock of Chickpea from the boiled chickpeas if desired. The stock is primarily used for making Saaru.

In a saucepan, heat 1 teaspoon of oil and saute red chillies and sligthly wilt the grated coconut and put off the flame. Allow to cool and grind along with rest of the ingredients to a smooth paste. In a separate vessel, which is a deep dish pan, add the boiled Chickpeas, Sooran(Yam) and ground paste and bring to boil. Turn over to lower flame and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Pour a temper of Mustard seeds and curry leaves in oil. Serve hot with Rice.

White Peas Coconut Curry (Dhave Vataaney Usal - Goan style)

When we were kids, I used to love going to Satyanarayana pooja's. The simple reason being the amazing aura of sublime taste of Vataana Usal which was served as the prasad. I was scratching my head on the dinner menu. Mom suggested this recipe. I could not believe, the taste was exactly the same. One of my Maushi taught my mother and she is an expert now is making this Usal, I can say I can make a decent dish out of the Usal recipe now.

Recipe Source: Mom

Serves: 4 individuals

Ingredients:

Whole White peas (also called as White Vataana) - 1 cup

Grated coconut ( or coconut powder) - 1/2 cup

Cumin powder - 1/2 teaspoon

Turmeric powder - 1/10 teaspoon

Salt - as per taste

Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon

Water - for curry consistency

Method:

Pre-soak Vataana in water for 5-6 hours post washing them. Boil in a pressure cooker for 1/2 hour and mash them gently once or twice.

In a saucepan, add the mashed peas and rest of the ingredients. Bring to a semi-running curry consistency. I used coconut powder instead of coconut (grated), the taste is the same. Serve hot with Chapathis.

Konkani Daal (Daali Thoi)

I was going through the blog postings and realised that one of the most important and essential dish of Konkani cookery which is Daali Thoi is missing from my blog. How could you not write about this dish, I quipped ? Daali Thoi is a dish we all grow up eating. It is known as the Kul Dev dish of konkani cuisines. Some like it and some hate it. I began cooking this dish while I was in high school and felt this was as easy as making Maggi. Lol! How, you ask me. Well its just 3 simple steps for this dish:

1. BOIL Daal with water
2. COOK Daal with Green Chillies, Asafoetida and minced Ginger
3. TEMPER with Curry leaves, Mustard seeds and serve hot.

Well, this is the formula I have been following and have grown up with. Daali Thoi with Ghee and Lime juice is our hot family favorite and continues to be. Its common to have Daali Thoi at home and the aroma wafting through your hallway is simply divine!!! Mom used to add the phanna (konkani term for tadka) for Daali Thoi only once the guests arrived home saying that this makes the daal more flavourful, fresh in aroma and rich. I follow the same method even to this date and find it actually true and easy.

Some like their Daali Thoi Daat (konkani term for thick). Some like their Daali Thoi Pattal (konkani term for thin). Whatever pleases your soul. My personal favorite is neutral - neither too thick nor too thin. The original recipe of Daali Thoi is without Turmeric powder. Hence, the color is light yellow and pale. Udupi style Daali Thoi is more on thinner side, whereas Katpaadi style Daali Thoi is more on thicker side and has loads of ginger in it. Both use the same procedure but the difference here is that the water is less or more.

Recipe Source: Mom
Serves: 3-4 individuals

Ingredients:
Toor Dal - 2 C
Ginger (minced) - 1 t
Asafoetida - 1/8 t
Mustard seeds - 1/2 t
Oil - for frying
Green Chillies (sliced) - 2-3
Water - for adding consistency
Curry leaves - 6-8 leaves
Salt - as per taste
Ghee (optional) - 3-4 t
Lime juice (optional) - 2 t

Method:
Boil Daal in pressure cooker, much better if you can wash the Daal and allow to soak in water for 15 minutes. That way the boiling time is reduced.

Once boiled, mash the daal with a ladel and add enough water for making a good consistency. Add asafoetida, green chillies, ginger and salt. On a separate pan, heat oil and once heated up, add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Add this temper mixture to the Daal and cover the lid of the Daal. Serve hot while serving with Rice, ghee and lime juice.

Black Eyes Peas curry with Yellow Chinese Cucumber Curry (Dhavve Adsaaney aani Magge Koddel)

Koddel is a konkani dish which is made of coconut, red chillies, tamarind paste cooked with vegetables, pulses and seasoned with garlic or mustard seeds. This is a ONE DISH type of food which serves as accompaniement as well as a side dish. The pulses and vegetables ooze out wonderful aroma.

I bought Yellow Chinese Cucumber from local India stores. This vegetable is cute, chubby and has beautiful yellow, green strips on them. Its difficult to judge a good cucumber from bad one except with the taste. Good ones do not taste sour and bad ones do.

There are some vegetables which I used to detest eating as a child. After having grown up, those same vegetables seem to be my favorites. Sounds kind of strange. Yellow Chinese Cucumber is one such vegetable also called as Magge in Konkani. It is also known as Dosakai in Kannada. I realised after cooking that the one I bought was little bitter. So called Mom and she said both the varieties would be found in a grocery. Some are bitter and some are good.

We make a Konkani based curry out of this vegetable called as Koddel. Koddel is a popular konkani dish based on coconut gravy and is seasoned with garlic and coconut oil. The whole kitche seems to waft with the redolent aroma of garlic once this dish is ready. Koddel and other varities of curries are categorized as Maasla Randayi. This originated from the word Maasolu which means gravy based on grated coconut and Bedgi chillies.

Mom had an interesting tale to tell me regarding Koddel. During olden days, when people did not have sufficient access to groceries they used to make Maasala randayi. Since everyone used to dwell in villages and during rainy season folks could not travel far to get vegetables from Saanta (konkani word for local vegetable market). Ladies in the house used to make ample use of lentils and legumes to make curries for lunches and dinners. Cucumbers used to grow in abundance in gardens and they used to add as a good supplement to curries which is also called as Bharshey (konkani word for accompaniement vegetable to be added in a curry).

Recipe Source: Mom
Serves: 4 individuals

Ingredients:
Black Eyed Peas - 1 C
Grated coconut - 1 c
Red Chillies - 4-6
Asafoetida - 1/10 t
Oil - for frying
Water - 8-10 C
Tamarind - 1" lump (optional)
Garlic flakes (crushed) - 6-8
Yellow Cucumber (chopped) - 1

Method:
Soak the peas overnight and boil in the pressure cooker next day. Transfer to a sauce pan alongwith sufficient water and set aside. Heat oil in a pan, and gently fry coconut alongwith red chillies. Allow to cool and gring this alongwith asafoetida and tamarind. Add this paste to the sauce pan of boiled peas. Add chopped cucumber alongwith the paste.

Bring to boil and give a garnish of crushed garlic sauted till charred in oil. Serve hot with rice.

Sending this entry to RCI: Mangalore and Udupi cuisines - July 2009. Good job Sia for hosting an event which enables us to showcase our regional cuisines.

Brown Lentil Garlic Curry (Masoori Thoi)

After coming to US, we have not been eating lentils of late. Apart from Toor Dal, we have been ignoring the lentil family big time. So I thought its time we spruce up the pantry with some more additions from the lentil family. On my last visit to the local grocery store, I chanced upon the lovely Brown Lentil packet. Brown Lentil or Masoor Dal as popularly known in India, takes me back to lovely childhood memories when Maa made tasty masoor bhaaji stuffed in bread and grilled to perfection. The taste was simply divine. Lentils also believed to be having the highest levels of protein, serve as a nutrition powerhouse especially for growing kids and individuals requiring high protein diet.

Serves: 4 individuals

Source: Mom

Ingredients:

Brown Lentil - 2 c

Green Chillies - 2

Water - for boiling

Salt - as per taste

Garlic (crushed) - 6-8 flakes

Oil - for frying

Method:

Boil the dal in a pressure cooker. This saves lot of time and fuel. Once cooked, boil the dal with salt, green chillies and water. The consistency should be that of a regular Indian dal, not too thick nor too thin. Once dal is cooked, temper the dal with crushed garlic fried in oil (preferably coconut oil as it lends a very good aroma). Serve hot with rice and upkari.

Black Eyed Peas Saaru (Dhavey Adsaaney Lasoon Phanna Saaru)

There are times when you want to eat light and do not want to eat anything which gives you a bloated feeling at the end of the meal. For me "Saaru" is one such dish which gives immense satisfaction as though I am part of something pure and natural. I prepared Lobhia curry yesterday and saved the water post boiling in a separate container. Today I wanted to sip something quick so what better than a Adsaaney Kale Saaru. Mom used to save all Saaru for me to eat with rice and kaaratey phodi. She used to always tell me that Saaru has lot of nutritional value in it.

Serves: 2 individuals
Recipe source: Mom

Ingredients:
Lobhia boiled water - 2-4 C
Bedegi chillies - 1
Garlic - crushed (5 flakes)
Salt - as per taste
oil for frying

Method:
Heat the Boiled water extracted from the boiled beans on a pan. Bring to boil and add salt. Prepare a tadka of oil with crushed garlic flakes and Bedegi chillies. Pour the tadka and mix well and serve hot with garlic bread. One can also eat this with rice and fries. Saaru tastes good when served with rice.

Black Eyes Peas Garam Masala Curry (Lobhia Masaley Randayi)

Usually I am not a Roti person at all. Today for some reasons I felt like tucking in some warm roti drizzled with ghee and have some hot-gravy based curry to mesh alongwith. Last month I got Black Eyed Peas from the grocery store and almost forgot. Today I found the packet in the tiny corner of my pantry. I thought I should make something out of these pretty looking legume family. This curry is my own version turned out quite well. I have toned down the taste and aroma with less spices however one can choose to tweak it accordingly.

Serves: 3-4 individuals
Recipe source: self

Ingredients:
Lobhia seeds - 3/4 C
Water - 4-6 C
Potato - 1 (boiled and chopped)
Coriander powder - 1 T
Onion - 1/2 c (chopped finely)
Coconut shavings - 1/2 C (ground to a paste)
Turmeric powder - 1/10 T
Salt - as per taste
Coriander leaves - 5-6 sprigs

Method:
Pre-soak Lobhia seeds in water. They pop up and grow big once soaked so even 1/2 C serves the purpose for servings of 2-3. Boil them alongwith Potato. Chop potatoes and keep aside. Grind grated coconut shavings, turmeric powder and garam masala powder along with 3-4 tablespoons of onion which are chopped.

Heat oil in a sauce pan and fry onions till they turn translucent. Add the ground paste. Add boiled potatoes and fry till get roasted. Add boiled lobhia alongwith water and bring to boil. Add coriander powder, turmeric powder, salt and ground coconut. Mix the curry well and bring to boil. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with Rotis.