Pavakkai / Bitter Gourd Chips

Bitter Gourd is something that I prepare every week; either as chips like these or as a stir fry. I avoid adding it in any curries as I fear I would not be able to include it in larger quantity. I've fried these many times, but fortunately I could click only yesterday.  Though deep fries are not my favorites, I feel it doesn't matter much if we have it less. 

Ingredients:

Bitter Gourd 1/4 kg
Chilli Powder 1/2 tsp
Rice Powder 1/2 tsp
Ginger Garlic paste 1/4 tsp (optional)
Salt

Method:

Chop Bitter Gourd into very fine pieces.

Combine all the other ingredients. Leave it aside for 15 minutes.

Deep fry until brown.

Serve as a snack or as a side dish to rice.

This recipe goes to Vegan Thursdays initiated by Priya Suresh of Priya's verstaile recipes. We are a group of bloggers who share only vegan recipes. To know more, click here.

Participate in my own event "Eat Vegetables; Stay Healthy" and win JUSTEAT vouchers.

Event Announcement "Eat Vegetables Stay Healthy"

This is my first event and am quite happy that JUSTEAT (www.justeat.in) is generous enough to provide vouchers to the winners of this event. 

I've always wondered why can't we order food online just like cosmetics, clothes, gadgets and others. I recently came to know about them and think it would be better if they start here too.. :-)

What is JUSTEAT?

India's largest online food ordering portal and table reservation website, headquartered in Bangalore and with branches in Delhi, Mumbai, plus a host of smaller cities and expanding rapidly. Their reliable one-click ordering system has greatly simplified the entire process of ordering food online. With over 2500 restaurants, 52 cuisines and 3 lakh dishes to choose from, they have made their mark as the most preferred way to beat hunger, with over 3.5 lakh registered users spanning all across India. Plus, they've recently launched their new online food ordering apps on Android, iPhone and Windows 8 platforms, complete with the option of online payment for food orders placed online through the app (www.justeat.in/mobile). Their parent company is headquartered in the UK, with a presence in 12 other countries apart from India (www.just-eat.com). 

Now about the event:

Though I am a vegetarian, I've recently started to value the vegetables more. My Mom is a diabetic and used to eat equal amount of rice and vegetables for her lunch. Though I see her eating that way since years, I've never managed to follow her strictly. Recently, something (health conscious?!!) hit me and I started eating lunch like her and have introduced more millets during breakfast and dinner. 

So what is the theme of "Eat Vegetables Stay Healthy" event?

It is vegetables; any recipe with vegetables. 

It can be a VEGETABLE Stir Fry, Deep Fry, Halwa, Kheer, Payasam, Sambar, Curry, Subji , Kootu, Dessert, Pickle, Salad, Bread, Cake, Cup cakes, Noodles, Macaroni, Pizza or Pasta or just anything with vegetables.  

Rules:

• Only Bloggers can participate and you can send any recipe with vegetables.
• No meat other than eggs, shrimps and chicken recipes are allowed, provided they have vegetables in it.
• Each entry must have the logo and linked to this page and JUSTEAT.
• Any number of archived entries are allowed provided they are linked with this event announcement page and JUSTEAT.
• Join me through Facebook and GFC. Please let me know that you have done in the comments section.
• Share this page on your Facebook wall. 
• The event runs from Nov 27, 2013 till Dec 26, 2013 and you can use the linky tool to link the entries. 
• Indian residents can participate in this event. Overseas Indian Residents can also participate and can provide the vouchers to their dear ones in India.  

*All the above said rules are compulsory.*

Give away and Winners:

• The blogger who contributes the highest number of entries would win a voucher worth Rs.500/- flat off on orders of Rs.501 and above.  If there is a tie, the blogger who sends more number of new entries will be declared as winner. 
• The next three top contributers would win a voucher each worth Rs.200 flat off on orders of Rs.400 and above.
• The winners will be declared on Dec 28,2013 and the vouchers are valid till Jan 15, 2014 on all online payment restaurants in Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Chennai. Links below.   

http://justeat.in/specials/op/bangalore

http://justeat.in/specials/op/delhi-ncr

http://justeat.in/specials/op/mumbai

http://justeat.in/specials/op/pune

http://justeat.in/specials/op/chennai  

So whats up? Rush in your entries.. You can celebrate this new year eve with good food through JUSTEAT. I hope you friends would make this event a big success.. 

Litti Chokha for SNC Challenge

Litti Chokha is a traditional dish mostly prepared and had in U.P, Bihar and Jharkand. I've never been to these places nor had a chance to taste their food. Thanks to the SNC event started by Divya of You too can cook. Without it, I would not be able to explore the traditional recipes like this. Each month a member of South Team would host and challenge a recipe to the north team and vice versa; the theme of SNC. 

Litti Chokha is made out of wheat flour with stuffing (or Pithi) made out of Sattu (roasted Bengal Gram Flour). When I served this to my Hus telling the name 'Litti Chokha', he asked what nethi chuttiya (an ornament worn in the forehead) ? But after eating he said its really nice and something very different from our regular food. He said he feels like eating in sowcarpet area of chennai. North Indians mostly live there. Thanks Nupur for the detailed recipe, without your step by step clicks, it would be very difficult for me to understand the recipe itself. I just used regular Bengal Gram Flour, but to know about the exact preparation of Sattu, please check out Nupur's space.

I tried making Litti through deep frying method. The flavor and the taste was awesome but few of the pieces didn't get cooked well. So I again tried this using oven. This time it came out well cooked. But when I was about to start, I noticed I was running out of Baking Soda. So I made the recipe without it; thus looks little flattened. Never mind, I like it and it is worth trying. 

Ingredients:

Litti:

Wheat Flour 1 cup
Ajwain seeds 1/4 tsp
Baking Soda 1/8 tsp
Warm Water 1/2 cup
Ghee 1 tblsp and additional Ghee for serving

Pithi/Stuffing:

Sattu 1/4 cup (I used roasted gram flour)
Chopped Coriander Leaves 1/4 cup
Green Chilly 1 (finely chopped)
Cumin Seeds 1/4 tsp
Finely chopped Ginger 1/2 tsp
Ajwain seeds 1/4 tsp
Mustard Oil 3/4 tbslp
Pickle 3/4 tbslp

Chokha:

Potatoes (Medium) 2
Garlic Cloves 2
Tomato half
Onion (Small) 1
Green Chilly 1 (finely chopped)
Finely chopped Ginger 1/2 tsp
Coriander Leaves Few
Mustard Oil 1 tsp
Salt

To prepare dough for Litti:

Mix all the ingredients except water. Now add water to form a soft dough. Cover and set it aside for half an hour.

To make Chokha (Stuffing):

Pressure cook Potatoes for three whistles. Peel the skin and mash it. 

Meanwhile, roast garlic and Tomato on the gas flame. Once cooled, remove the skin and mash it with spoon. 

In a bowl,combine mashed potatoes, tomato and garlic. Add all other ingredients along with salt. Mix well. 

To shape and cook Litti:

Divide the dough into medium sized balls. With a rolling pin, roll it like a small chapathi without adding additional flour. 

Take a tblsp of the stuffing, put in the center of the dough piece, wrap it and close from all sides. Pinch off the extra piece. Press it gently to flatten.

Preheat the Oven at 200 deg C. Place all the pieces in a baking tray. Allow baking for 30-35 minutes. Flip them for 2-3 times in between for even cooking.

Serving:

Break Litti at the center. Drop little Ghee so that it reaches both the Chokha and the stuffing. Serve with Chokha and/or chutney.

Linking this recipe to SNC this month hosted by Nupur.

Cabbage Stir Fry with Moong Dhal

This stir fry is my mom's signature recipe. The addition of Moong Dhal makes it much more tastier and healthier. Nowadays whenever I make cabbage stir fries, I do not forget to add Moong Dhal. I like the way my son and Hus completes it without any fuss. 

Ingredients:

Shredded Cabbage 1 cup
Carrot half
Moong Dhal fistful
Grated Coconut 1 tblsp (or as needed)
Turmeric Powder a pinch
Dried Red Chillies 1-2
Salt
Water
Oil

To temper:

Mustard Seeds 1/2 tsp
Urad Dhal 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves few
Pearl Onions few

Preparation:

Chop  Pearl Onions. Grate Coconut and Cabbage. Chop Carrot into fine pieces. Slit Chillies.

Soak Moong Dhal in 1/4 cup of water for 10-15 minutes. This step is not much necessary as Moong Dhal gets cooked faster but this is to ensure that it cooks much more faster.

Heat Oil in a Pan. When hot, add Mustard Seeds. When they start popping up,add Urad Dhal, Curry leaves, Turmeric Powder, Red Chillies and Pearl Onions. Fry till the onions turn translucent. 

Now add the chopped carrot, cabbage and Salt. Saute for a while and then add Moong Dhal along with the water. Cook till done. Add coconut and fry for few more minutes until done.

Serves: 2
Serve with hot rice and any spicy curry.

Pasiparuppu Urundai / Moong Dhal Laddoo

I prepare Pottukadalai Urundai (Fried Channa Dhal or Chutney Dhal Laddoos) quite often. For a change, I thought of making Laddoos with yellow Moong Dhal. This is not as tasty as Pottukadalai Urundai (may be because I got used to eat that since years), but I think we can have it once in a while for its healthy benefits.

Ingredients:

Pasiparuppu (Split - Yellow Moong Dhal) 1 cup
Sugar 1/2 cup (or as needed)
Raisins or nuts
Ghee 4-5 tbsp

Method:

Dry roast Moong dhal on a low to medium flame with continuous stirring till it turns slightly golden brown and the raw smell leaves. This is a very crucial step. This would take more than five minutes. If this is not done good, then laddoos would give a raw smell of Moong dhal.

Once cooled grind it to a fine powder. Powder sugar and sieve both together. Transfer to a plate.

Melt Ghee in a Pan. Pour it to the flour-sugar mixture. Mix well and pinch little (lemon size) and prepare laddoos along with raisins as soon as possible when it is hot.. If the flour is dry, add 1-2 tblsp of melted ghee and can be proceeded.