Pulla / Putekalu Besaru

ingredients:

Urad daal socked - 1 cup (take the daal in a blender and adding little water grind it into vada batter consistency)
Raw or dry mango pcs/ frozen cut mango - 3
Red chillis - 1 whole
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - few
Tomato - 1/2 medium sized into cubes
Onion - 1 small cubed
turmeric - pinch
Oil - 2 tbs

Raw masala paste :

Red chillis - 6 whole
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Onion - 1 medium
Garlic - 1 flake
Tomato - 1/2 of medium one
Grind all ingredients together in a small mixie jar without adding water. Adding 1/2 tomato suppresses the rawness of onions and helps to cook masala fast in the oil.
Below is the picture showing the main ingredients of this besaru.

Procedure :

- Take a deep bottomed vessel on medium flame. Do tempering with oil, mustard, red chilli and few curry leaves.
- To it add the onions, fry for few minutes then add tomatoes, mango pcs then the raw masala and add little turmeric powder.
- Fry the masala until you assure the rawness in 90% gone.
- Then add 6 cups of water and let it on the high flame till it starts boiling.
- Once you find the masala water at bubbling stage, take the batter in one hand and with other hand drop small lumps into it as shown in the picture. (keep adjusting the flame if feel heat coming up to your hands).
- Make sure you are not dropping the lumps together, go around the vessel to make sure all the balls are separated. Add salt to taste once you are done with dropping the small balls into water.
- Due to softness of the balls some of those get dissolve in the water which may give good consistency to curry. (If you can't get the balls soft then don't worry add little water to a 1/2 cup of batter and add that to the curry while cooking. Which gives a very good consistency to your besaru.)
-Let the curry cook on medium to low flame for 8 to 10 minutes covered with lid. Turn off the stove and serve hot with white rice and some oil added to it. Alu fry or any other fries are a very good combination with this besaru.

Tips:

- Besaru has many versions, made with a wide range of vegetables like mushrooms, thota kura, loose corn, bachala kura, ridge guard and with raw cashew nuts, cottage paneer etc.

Masala Vankaya..

Ingredients:

• Brinjals : 6-8no


• Oil-3 tspoons


• Onion -1 medium finely chopped


• Tomoto -1 medium finely chopped


• tamrind paste-2 -3 spoons


• Salt -as per taste


• Corriander leaves for garnishing

Masala Powder:

• Channa dal:1tbspoon


• Urad dal:1 tsp


• Peanuts:Fist full


• Corriander seeds :3 tbs


• Nuvvulu:1 tsp


• Menthulu:3 - 4 seeds


• Jeera:1/2 tsp


• Garam masala powder:1/2 tsp(or add 2 cloves ,small cinnomon piece)


• Coconut powder:2 tsp


• Whole redchillies :5-6
• Salt -little bit.

dry roast all ingredients(except coocnut powder) and powder altogether.

Procedure:

• Cut the bringals with 'X' mark i .e slit each brinjal into four sections lengthwise without cutting off the crown.The brinjals are ready for stuffing .
• Stuff each brinjal with masala powder without breaking them and keep the remaing powder aside if any .
• Take a kadai pour oil ,add some mustard and cumin seeds ,once they starts spluttering add finely chopped onions .
• once onions are fried add tomotoes and fry well.
• Now add stuffed brinjals and fry for 2 min and add the remaining powder by mixing it with 1/2 cup of water , tamrind pulp and salt little bit(remenber u added salt in the powder also)
• cook with lid covered in medium flame till brinjals are well cooked and oil oosses all sides.
• Garnish with corriander leaves.
• Serve hot with rice or any with veg pulav.

Note:u can even replace brinjal with capsicum pieces.

Chicken Dum Biriyani (pukki)

Guys we have lot of methods and varieties for Dum biryani. But out of all my tries I found this as my standard cooking style for my biryani . Which became one among tempting dishes for main course for every other weekends to my Family members. I would love to share this recipe (of course adapted from so many videos and web sources) with you all.

Ingredients as follows :-

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For cooking chicken :

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Chicken - 1 1/2 lbs

Biryani masala - 3 tbs

Green Chillis - 6 no.

G/G paste - 2 tbs

Curd - 6 tbs

Whole spices - 2 - 5 no. each (bay leaves+ cardamom + cloves + javntri + peppercorns + cinnamon + Kala jeera + star anise)

Coriander leaves - 1 cup chopped finely
mint leaves - 1 cup chopped finely

Lemon - 1 whole

oil - 3 tbs
Chilli pdr - 1 tbs

Turmeric - 1 tsp

Salt to taste

For cooking Basmati Rice:

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Basmati Rice - 3 cups

Water - 3/ 4 the vessel you use

kala Jeera - 1 tsp

Whole spices - 1 each

oil - 2 tbs

For assmbling & topping the Biryani:

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Dry kismis - 1/2 cup

Cashew broken - 1/4 cup

saffron + food color in Dissolved in 2tsp warm milk

Chopped mint and coriander leaves - few

Biryani masala - 1/2 tsp

Aluminium tray - 1 (or a bakeware tray for cooking the rest 30 % of it)

Aluminium foil - of tray size

Fried onions - 1/2 cup (use store bought, if not can cut a big onion into thin slices and fry nicely in some oil and take that out of it. can use that oil for further process)

Butter - 1/2 slab

Salt to taste

Procedure :-

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For Cooking Chicken ->

-Cut chicken into medium size pieces, clean and marinate with chilli pdr + salt + 1/2 lime + turmeric, and keep aside for 2 hours.

- Mean while get ready with all the ingredients needed for cooking chicken (75%).

- Take a Wide non-stick pan on the medium flame. Add the whole spices allow to splutter, then follow with G/G paste and green chillis. after few minutes add the marinated chicken. Mix well and leve the chicken on medium flame for 5 minutes till it looses all its moisture content.

- Now, it's turn to add Biryani masala, curd, 1/2 lemon, chopped leaves & salt to it. Check Salt lever to be little milder as we are going to add some salt to rice while cook. Blend evenly so that all the ingredients mix up well and adjust your spice level with some chilli powder if want more hot.

- Once you assure that chicken cooked 75% turn off the stove and keep aside.

For cooking Rice ->

-Take excess water in a deep vessel on High flame,add Oil, whole spices, kala jeera, salt to it.

- One the other hand wash the rice finely and drain well, keep aside.

- The moment water starts boiling add the rice to it. Kepp stirring occasionally so that rice wont stick to bottom.

-Turn of the stove once you feel rice cooked 75 % as shown in the picture turn off the stove.

-And drain excess water from rice using a good stainer immediately. Caution of hot doing this job

For Assambling ->

- Get ready with all your topping ingredients before you start assembling.

-Take the aluminium tray arrange the cooked chicken on the bottom of the tray as shown. keep the excess gravy with you separately to put on the rice layer and can serve with biryani while eating as biryani gravy.

- Top the chicken with fried onions. then add rice gently spreading evenly all around.

- Now its turn to add one by one toppings like dry fruits, butter, chopped leaves, sprinkle biriyani masala and the left over gravy.

- Do a crisscross on the rice with saffron milk as shown in the picture.

- Cover the tray with a foil and put that for 1 hr in a preheated oven at 450'F.

- Turn off the stove once the time is over and leave it in the oven for 15 minutes at least. Am sure by this time your house will be diffused of the biryani dum all around. Make sure you leave your Windows open to get free of the smell.

Not but least get ready with a cup of cucumber kachumbri, few lemon wedges and seruwa(Biryani gravy) for your dinner. Enjoy with a diet coke and a movie on your TV screen.

Whole masoor curry

Ingredients :

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Whole masoor daal - 1/2 cup
garlic cloves crushed - 2
small onions - 2 chopped finely
small potato - 1
coriander leaves/cilantro for garnishing - few
chili powder - 2 tsp
mustard seeds - 2 tsp
turmeric powder - 1 tsp
asafoetida - 1/2 tsp

fresh coconut(optional) - 1 tsp
black Maharashtrian Masala (Goda Masala) - 2 tsp (can use garam masala if don't have gada)
salt to taste
sugar (if you like that sweet flavor in your dal) - 1/2 tsp
oil - 2 tsp

Method :
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- Soak dal overnight and next day drain all the water, wash and keep it covered in a warm place or tie it in a muslin cloth to let it sprout.
- Pressure cook the dal until just tender ( one wistle is enough as the daal is tiny).
- Chop potatoes into small pieces. Chop onions.
- Heat oil in a saucepan or a copper bottom pan. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add asafoetida and turmeric powder. Add crushed garlic and black masala/ garam masala at this stage. Immediately add chopped onions and potatoes and saute for a minute.
- Cover till potatoes are done. Add the boiled dal and 2 cups water. Add salt, chili powder and boil for 10 minutes.

Garnish with cilantro and coconut. Serve with chapati or rice.

Tips :

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- It comes for 5 servings.

- Can use chopped tomatoes afte adding onions.

- For quicker version, skip the soaking and sprouting process, just pressure cook the unsprouted masoor dal and use it directly for the recipe .

- Add garam masala instead of black masala for change of taste.

Veggie Quesadilla

Ingredients:
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Corn tortillas-1 or 2 (store bought)
mushrooms-2
onions- 1/2 of medium
green chillis- 1 finely sliced
zucchini- 1/2 of the whole
tomatoes- 1/2 of medium
capsicum- 10 small pcs
salsa- 1 tbs (can use store one or home made)
cheddar cheese- 1/2 cup
butter- 1 tbs
salt- little

Steps to make:
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- As shown in the picture get ready with tortillas, cheese, salsa and chopped vegetables need to make 1 veg-Quesadilla.

- it's time to toss the vegetables for filling in little butter and pinch of salt.

- Take a non-stick wide pan on medium flame, add butter after heated up. then add all the chopped ingredients to the pan and stir gently.

- Make sure all the vegetables just tossed and half cooked. Don't allow those to over cook. Turn off and keep aside.

- Take a griddle on medium flame on stove. Rest one tortilla in the middle and make a circular motion to it with a spatula or your fingers to ensure in crisps up evenly.

- Make upside down and repeat the same for the other side. Now,add Some cheese to half of it followed by vegetables. then add the salsa evenly and spread with some more cheese. Make sure the flame is set to low.

- The tortilla is folded over the layered vegetables-salsa-cheese. Press down gently all around.

- Turn to other side and press down again and again to make sure both the sides stick to each other firmly.

- Serve with the lettuce, salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.