Cabbage dal

My kids love dal, but they don't like cabbage stir fry or any dish with cabbage. So one day I thought of adding cabbage in  dal and they didn't even realize that their favorite dal had cabbage in it. Whether you like cabbage or not, this dish takes dal to a different level. It can be served with rice or roti..a little ghee and papads on the side to go with rice makes it a yummy meal.

Ingredients

Toor dal or split moong dal - 1/2 cup

Onion - half of a medium sized, chopped fine

Shredded cabbage - 2 cups

Tomato - 1 small, chopped (optional)

For tempering

Oil - 2 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Jeera/ Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Dry red chillies - 2

Curry leaves - a sprig

Garlic - 3 cloves crushed

Hing/asafetida - a generous pinch

Turmeric powder - 1/4 TSP

Chilly powder - 3/4 TSP

Chopped coriander leaves to garnish

Salt as needed

Preparation

1. Rinse and drain dal and pressure cook with 2 cups of water.

2. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds followed by jeera. Add crushed garlic and saute till raw smell is gone. Add dry chillies, onion, curry leaves and hing.

3. Stir for a minute and add cabbage and spice powders.  Mix well and add tomato.

4. Stir fry for a minute. Add cooked dal and enough salt. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add water if needed to adjust consistency.

5. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves/cilantro.

Serve hot.

Padavalanga parippu thoran / Snake gourd and dal stir fry

Ingredients:

Snake gourd/Padavalanga/Padwal - 1 medium

Chana dal - 1/4 cup

Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Shallots/Sambar onion - 4 or 5, peeled and sliced thin

Green chillies - 2, slit

Curry leaves - a  small sprig

Salt to taste

To grind

Grated coconut - 3 to 4 tbsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Garlic - 1 or 2 cloves

Green chillies - 1

Cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp

Preparation:

1. Pressure cook the chana dal with just enough water to cook for 1 or 2 whistles. The dal should be 3/4th cooked.

2. Rub the peel off the snakegourd, and chop it into cubes.

3. Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds. Add onions, green chillies ad curry leaves and saute till onions start turning brown. 

4. Add the cooked dal and the snake gourd and combine well. Add enough salt and cover and cook for few minutes till gourd is cooked.

5. Grind the coconut and other ingredients coarsely without adding water. Add this to the cooked dal and gourd and mix well. Stir fry for a minute.

Serve with rice or roti.

Events:

Kerala Kitchen - May 2012 hosted by Jehanne of The Cooking Doctor. Check the Kerala Kitchen page here

ABC Series: GOURDS hosted in my blog

Parippu cheera curry / Dal Palak Kerala style

A healthy and comfort food with rice or roti. Dal is a good source of proteins and spinach is rich in anti-oxidants,folic acid and iron. This curry is made with ground coconut, check out the other version  without coconut here.

Ingredients:

Toor dal/tuvara parippu - 3/4 cup
Spinach/Palak/cheera - 2 bunches
Green chillies - 2, slit
Garlic cloves - 4
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste

For grinding
Shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
Sambar onion / shallot - 1
Jeera/cumin seeds - a pinch
Water  - 2 tbsp

For tempering
Oil - 1 or 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Dry red chillies - 1 or 2
Sambar onion / shallot - 3 or 4 (sliced fine)
Curry leaves - a few

Preparation:


1. Pressure cook dal with enough water for 1 whistle. Wash and chop the spinach leaves. Add spinach, green chillies, garlic, turmeric and chilly powder to the cooked dal and cook for some more time till spinach wilts.
2. Meanwhile, grind together the ingredients given above to a smooth paste. Add this to the cooked dal and spinach and let it boil.
3. Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds. Add dry chillies followed by sliced onions and curry leaves. Fry till you get a nice aroma of onions and curry leaves. Pour this over the curry.

Enjoy with rice and papad.

Events:

Kerala Kitchen - March 2011 hosted by Prathibha, an event series started by Ria and Rose
Let's cook: Greens by Radhika
Healthy Morsels - Pregnancy as this recipe is a healthy dish with the goodness of dal and spinach. 

Only-South Indian hosted by Pari
Gimme Green hosted by Rosh

Love Lock Series: Legumes hosted by Vardhini. This event series was initiated by Vidhya

Moong dal curry with Coconut

This is a traditional kerala style curry which is very mildly spicy. My  husband and little girl loves this curry and it is a comfort food at home. Best served with hot rice and pappadam/appalam.

Ingredients:

1. Split yellow Moong dal -1 cup
    Water - 2 cups

2. Shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
    Green chillies - 2 or 3
    Jeera/Cumin seeds - a large pinch
    Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
    Shallot/Sambar onion - 1(optional)
    Garlic - 1 clove
    Salt

3. Oil - 1 tbsp
    Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
    Dry red chillies - 1 or 2
    Shallots/Sambar onion - 2 or 3, sliced fine
    Curry leaves - a few

Note: You may substitute moong dal with toor dal if you like.

Preparation:

1. In a pressure cooker, add the moong dal and water and cook till dal is mushy. After one whistle, lower the flame and cook for 2 more whistles. After the pressure is released, mash the dal well and keep aside.
2. Meanwhile, grind all the ingredients in list 2 to a smooth paste adding enough water. Add this paste to the cooked dal and bring to boil. Add enough salt and water for the gravy.
3. Heat oil in a tadka pan and splutter mustard seeds. Add the dry red chillies, curry leaves and shallots and wait till shallots turn brown. Pour this to the curry and close with the lid so that the flavour infuses well.

This one goes to Anyone can cook: Series 32

Also sending this to The Kerala Kitchen hosted by Divya Kudua  this month

Adai Dosa

Adai dosa is considered to be the most nutritious among all dosas as it has the goodness of lentils along with rice. Lentils are a good source of protein and dietary fiber. Adai is a delicacy of tamilnadu and I had it first time at Adayar Ananda Bhavan(A2B). I had no clue of what goes in to that dish, until I visited my friends place and got the recipe from her cook. This is a healthy dosa for kids too, and I am so happy that my little one loved it.

So, here is the recipe...

Ingredients:

Idly rice - 1 cup
Urad dal - 1/4 cup
Chana dal - 1/4 cup
Toor dal - 1/4 cup
Green gram/moong - 1/4 cup
Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp

Shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
Green chillies - 3 or 4
Ginger - 1 inch peice
Jeera/Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Salt
Water

Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp or more (optional)
Onion - 1, finely chopped
Chopped coriander - a handful
Oil

Preparation:

1. Wash and clean the idly rice and the 4 dals and soak in water along with ,fenugreek seeds for a minimum of 4 hours. If you are planning to make it for breakfast, soak overnight.
2. Add coconut, green chillies, ginger, cumin,salt and enough water to the soaked ingredients and grind it to a smooth batter. The consistency is almost same as the regular dosa batter.
3. Add chopped onion, coriander leaves, pepper powder and keep aside for 10-15 mins. You may prepare chutney in the meantime.
4. Heat the dosa tava and grease it with a little oil. Pour a ladle full of batter and spread it with the back of the ladle to a form a circle. Cover with a lid and cook on medium-low flame till cooked. Drizzle few drops of oil and flip to the other side and cook for a few more seconds. Transfer to a plate.

Serve hot with chutney. The chutney in the picture above is Onion Chutney. You may also serve it with Tomato Chutney.

Sending this to Proteinicious hosted by Sobha of Good Food

Sending this to Show me your Dosa hosted by Divya

Linking this to Life is Green Event 

Also goes to Dosa recipes hosted by Sameena

Parippu Vada

പരിപ്പ് വട 

A few days ago, when I called my parents around tea time in India, they were munching on Parippu Vada. It is one of my favourite snacks from childhood. I took the recipe from my mother and decided to wait till weekend to try it out...For my non-keralite friends, Parippu vada is a snack made with Toor dal. Check out the recipe for more details...

Ingredients:

Toor Dal - 1 cup
Onion - 1, finely chopped
Green chilly - 2 chopped finely (Don't add if you are serving this to small kids. Instead, adjust the spice level with chilly powder)
Finely chopped ginger -1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Chilly powder - 1 tsp (adjust)
Curry leaves - a few, chopped
Oats - 1 tbsp (optional, but it makes the vada crispier)
Salt
Oil to deep fry

Preparation:

1. Soak the toor dal in water for an hour. Drain the water completely and grind it coarsely without adding water in a mixer.
2. Add onion,green chilly, ginger, turmeric and chilly powders, curry leaves,oats and salt to the ground dal and mix well.
3. Shape the mix to make small patties.
4. Heat oil in a pan. Gently drop the vada one by one and deep fry till they are golden.

Serve hot.

Dal Palak

This one is an Andhra style version of Dal Palak. The recipe was given by a friend of mine who is a native of Hyderabad. I love Andhra food for its spices. My spice tolerance is much better than an average person. I remember when I had hyderabad biriyani once, it was so spicy that my eyes started watering. But it was so yummy that I couldn't leave it, so I managed with the help of some raitha...

Back to our recipe...

Ingredients:

1. Toor dal or Moong dal - 3/4 cup
    Chopped Palak/Spinach  - 1 cup
    Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
    Chilly Powder - 1 tsp
    Garlic cloves - 3

2. Oil
    Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
    Cumin seeds / Jeera - 1 tsp
    Onion - 1, finely chopped
    Green chilly - 2
    Curry leaves - a sprig
    Ghee -1 tsp or more (optional)

Preparation:

1. Put all the ingredients listed under item 1 in a pressure cooker. Add a cup of water and cook for 2-3 whistles.
2. In a pan, add 1-2 tbsp of oil and splutter mustard and cumin seeds.
3. Add onions,green chillies and curry leaves and saute till onions are light brown. You may also add chopped tomatoes if you like.
4. Add the cooked dal palak from the cooker and mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add a tsp of ghee to make it more delicious.

Serve hot.

Linking this to Life is Green Event