Bean and Egg Fry

I learnt this recipe from my mum, it is very simple and tasty.

Beans - 250gms, cleaned and diced

Onion - 1 chopped fine

Garlic - 4 flakes cut fine

Ginger - a small piece cut fine

Green chillies - 2 cut fine

Soya sauce - 1 tbsp

Salt and pepper to taste

Eggs - 2 beaten

Heat 2 tbsps of oil in a pan, fry onions, garlic, ginger & green chillies. Add beans with pepper and salt to taste. Keep stirring for about 10 mins till beans are almost cooked. Sprinkle soya sauce, keep on stirring. Once beans are fully cooked, add the 2 beaten eggs, keep on stirring till the eggs coat the beans and are fully cooked.

Chayote Squash Chilli Fry

This is an extremely easy recipe that i learnt from my husband. I had no idea what chayote squash was! Now we eat it every week!

1 chayote squash cut into cubes after taking out the seed.

Put in a microvawable dish, cover with water and micro high for 5 mins. Take out and drain.

Heat oil in a pan, add 1 tsp of mustard, 1/2 tsp jeera. When the mustard splutters, add 1/2 tsp chilli powder and a pinch of turmeric, add squash and mix well. Keep stirring and till the squash is well coated. Add salt to taste.

Goes well with curd rice, chapathies, rice and rasam.

Crochet

I Love Crochet!

I became interested in needlework & craft by watching my great grandmother, grandmother and mother effortlessly create lovely treasures. I was so amazed that just with thread and a needle or hook you could make such intricate designs, at the end of it you feel a sense of achievement! I have to make a special mention of my great grandmother who never sat idle even for a moment even at the age of 90! She was always busy crocheting and her work was absolutely stunning, hope that i could be half as good as her one day.

My Mum thought me the basics of crochet and from then on there has been no looking back. Once you learn the basic chain and the rest of the stitches, you can follow patterns or just create your own. The possibilities are endless....doilies( my favourite!), edgings, table mats, kitchen pads, baby blankets, tablecloths & runners, sweaters etc

I have not yet ventured into tablecloths & clothing, but hope in the future i can be proud to say i have done so!

Above are pictures of a few doilies i have done.

Methi Chapathi

This chapathi is a variation of the usual chapathi that i make every other day. The kasoori methi gives it a nice taste.

2 cups wheat flour

1/2 tsp salt
2 tsps curd/yoghurt

1 tbsp kasoori methi
warm water to mix

In a bowl mix the flour, salt, curd, kasoori methi. Add the water and knead into a soft dough.
Keep aside for about 1 hour.

Roll out into chapathis and fry with a little oil.

Capsicum & Potato Rice

1 capsicum cut into cubes
1 potato, cut into small cubes and boiled
1 onion sliced

1 tsp ginger garlic paste

2 green chillies chopped fine

Cilantro, a handful chopped

3/4 tsp chilli powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

salt to taste
For seasoning:

Oil

1 tsp Mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dhal

1/2 tsp channa dhal

Cooked Rice - 2 cups (can be adjusted according to taste)

Heat oil, add urad dhal, channa dhal & mustard seeds, when the mustard splutters, add the onion and green chillies, stir till onion turns pale, add ginger garlic paste and cilantro. Mix well and fry till the raw smell goes away. Add capsicum and potatoes, keep stirring till the capsicum is cooked. Add chilli powder, turmeric powder and salt to taste.

Last add the rice and mix thoroughly. This rice tastes nice when eaten with potato chips, pickle or papad.

Egg Pulao

This recipe was adapted from the Mangalore Ladies Club Cook book, i added the chilli powder to spice it up.

2 cups basmati rice cooked
Juice of 1 lime
4 Eggs boiled

1 onion sliced

Corriander leaves( cilantro) chopped - a handful

Grind - 5 green chillies, 1 tsp aniseed, 1 tsp ginger garlic paste.

Cinnamon 1 inch

3 cloves
2 cardamom
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 onion sliced and fried for garnishing.
Salt to taste

Heat 1/4 cup oil, add cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. Add sliced onions and fry till pale. Add the ground paste. Fry for a few minutes, add 1/2 tsp chilli powder. Add chopped corriander and salt to taste. Stir and add boiled eggs along with lime juice. After a few minutes add the cooked rice and mix well.

Garnish with fried onions and coriander leaves.

Samosa?

For a long time now my husband has been asking me if i could make samosas. I have not tried before, so i decided i should attempt making them. For the pastry i used the recipe from Mamta's Kitchen http://www.mamtaskitchen.com/recipe_display.php?id=10461.

The filling was made by my husband which turned out really good.

The end product was tasty. I made 2 shapes as my husband preferred the bigger ones with more filling and i liked the smaller ones which actually looked like samosas!

For Pastry:
2 cups plain flour or maida
4 tbs. cooking oil
1/2 tsp. salt
Water to make dough

Making Pastry:
Place flour, salt and oil in a bowl. Rub with your fingers, like pastry flour. It should look like bread crumbs.
Make a firm dough adding a little water at a time. I tend to make mine in a food processor, it is easier and quicker. If making by hand, knead it well.
Keep aside for 20 minutes, covered with a moist cloth and then knead again.

For the filling:
1 potato boiled and chopped
1/2 onion chopped

3 green chillies, chopped

1/2 tsp garlic paste

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp chilli powder

1/4 tsp each of cumin and mustard seeds

salt to taste

Curry leaves

Cilantro

Peas( we used frozen peas)

Heat oil, season with jeera and mustard and curry leaves. Add onions and green chillies. Fry till pale, add the garlic paste and powders. Mix well, add the potatoes, peas and salt to taste. Fry for two minutes, lastly add the cilantro.

Making Samosas:
Mix 1 tsp. flour with 2 tbs. water, to make a 'glue'. Keep it aside.
Divide the dough into 8-10 portions and make balls, using greased hands. Keep covered with a moist muslin/cloth.
Roll one ball on a greased surface, into an 7-8 inch circle, 2-3 mm. thick. Cut it into half using a knife
Lift one half in your palm and mak a cone, by folding the straight edge in the centre and overlapping.
Glue the overlapping edges (4-5 mm. overlap) and press gently to give a good seal.
Now fill the cone with approximately 2 tbs. of the meat mix.
You should have enough edge left at the top (4-5 mm), to get a good seal. Using the 'glue', press and seal edges together.
Make all samosas like this. Keep them covered with a moist cloth. If pastry is allowed to dry, it is more likely to burst during frying.
Heat oil in a wok or karahi, on medium heat. Test by putting a small piece of dough into it, it should sizzle and rise to the top quickly.
Put as many samosa as will spread out easily in your wok and fry gently to golden brown. If you fry too fast, the pastry will not be stiff.
Take out and place on absorbent paper on a plate so that the excess oil drains away.

The bigger samosas that i made is done by just rolling out a circle, putting the stuffing in the centre and folding over in a semi circle and closing off the edges.