Instant Sambar for Idli / Dosa ( Step - by - Step)

When ever we order Idli or Dosa at Hotel it comes with wide variety of Chutney, Podi and Sambar. I think that's what makes it acquire special taste for the Breakfast at Hotel. At Home I make Chutney when ever I make Idli or Dosa just to get the Restaurant Touch, but I have never made sambar as it is time consuming and i won't have that much energy in the morning. So recently I have come across this recipe, to make sambar instantly, it takes only around 15 minutes to make it with very less ingredients. Since then Idli and Dosa found great companion at my home, bringing the same restaurant taste to our South Indian Breakfast Plate. Here is the recipe, Njoy!

Instant Sambar

Ingredients:

Red Chili - 2

Onion -1/2 medium

Tomato - 1

Putnala Pappu  ( Roasted Chana Dal) -   2 Tbsp ( or 1/4 cup)

Tamarind - 1 Tbsp

Jaggery - 1 Tbsp ( or Brown Sugar)

Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp

Sambar Powder - 1 tsp

salt - 1 tsp

Coriander Leaves - 1 Tbsp ( Chopped)

Water -1  Cup

Oil - 1 Tbsp

Tempering ( Taalimpu):

Ghee -  1 Tbsp

Chana Dal - 1 tsp

Urad Dal - 1 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp

Curry Leaves - 5

Preparatory Steps:

• Grind Roasted Chana Dal into fine powder and add to 1/2 cup of water and keep it aside.
• Add  1/3 cup of water to Tamarind and heat in microwave safe bowl for 1 min. Let it cool and mash the tamarind making it tamarind paste ( remove the tamarind pulp)

Method:

1. Add 1 Tbsp Oil in the Non stick pot. Once the oil is hot, add red chili and finely sliced onions to the pan. Let the onions saute for 2 min. Now add Chopped Tomato to pot, mix it well and close the lid and let it simmer for 3 min. 
2. Remove the lid, now everything is mixed together, add Tamarind paste to the Pot. Mix it well with Onion Tomato mixture. Add salt, turmeric powder and sambar powder and mix well. close the lid and simmer for 5 min. Now add Chana Dal Powder mixed in with water to the pot. Add Jaggery and close the lid and simmer for 3 min. 
3. Now to make tempering (taalimpu), Heat non-stick pan and add Ghee to it. Once the Ghee is hot, add Chana Dal, Urad Dal, Cumin Seeds, Mustard Seeds. Once Mustard Seeds start spluttering add Curry Leaves that makes the tempering complete. Now add this Tempering to Sambar, finally garnish with some Coriander Leaves or Cilantro. 

Dig in your Idli or Serve Dosa with this Instant Sweet and Spicy Sambar to give that restaurant touch. 

Pictorial:

Ingredients to Make Instant Sambar

Onion and Tomato Mixture simmering in Pot.

Add Tamarind Paste.

Add salt, turmeric, sambar powder to pot and mix it well.

Add Roasted Chana Dal powder mixed in with water to the Pot, along with Jaggery.

Finally Add Taalimpu to Sambar.

Finally taste and adjust salt and seasonings, and garnish with Cilantro.

Serve immediately along with Idli or Dosa.

Tips:

• Serve immediately once this is prepared. After some time it will become thick, you can store it in Fridge up to 2 to 3 days. But when you are serving again add some water to it and microwave it to get back it's consistency. 
• The color and taste of this dish depends upon the Tomatoes you are using. Use Cluster and Juicy Tomatoes for this recipe.

will be back with another quick recipe,

until then take care

-Mythreyi

Instant Soft Tomato Rava Dosa

By looking at the title you must be thinking what in the opposite World am I in? Cause, usually Rava Dosa is made Crispy and with Onions. There is a story behind this innovation. One day, when my son woke up, I have asked him, what he would like to eat?, as if I am prepared with every possible breakfast. Instantly he said, he wants Dosa, with excitement. But I am not ready with Dosa Batter. Then this Instant Rava Dosa was rescue recipe to me, to make it kid friendly (I made it soft) and to sneak in some vegetables, I have altered the basic Rava Dosa recipe. That's how this Soft Tomato Rava Dosa was created.

Soft Tomato Rava Dosa

Unlike the basic Rava Dosa this is not crispy, so it will be soft for your little ones taste buds. Here is the recipe for you and  it will be handy when your kid instantly wants Dosa. :-)

Ingredients:
Suji Rava - 1 cup
Rice Flour - 1/2 cup
All Purpose Flour / Maida - 1/2 cup
salt - 1 tsp
Tomato - 1 medium
Yogurt/Curd - 1/2 cup ( adjust accordingly)



How to make it:
1. Grind the Tomato in mixie or magic bullet and set aside
2. Mix the Suji Rava, with Rice Flour and Miada Flour along with Yogurt or Curd.
3. Add salt and mix the tomato juice into mixture.
4. Add water accordingly to make it like very thin batter. Leave it for 30 minutes for more fermentation.
5.  Heat the Griddle and pour some batter on and let it spread quickly.
6. Once it is cooked well roll it and serve with ketchup or some ghee and sugar or some veg curry.

Dosa Served with Green Bean Curry

Tips:
1. To make it less spicy, I have not used green chilies or cumin seeds, if your little one can handle spice, then you can add these to the batter.
2. This mixture is little thick than normal dosa, so you have pour and let it spread quickly and cook slowly.
3. It takes little longer time to get cook compare to normal dosa.
4. The tangy tomato and Yogurt are the secret ingredients and aids in quick fermentation.


Take care until next time
-Mythreyi

Menu Plan Series

After a long cooking journey in my kitchen, by now Cooking for a Couple or a Family become instantaneous for me. Now all the trouble and thinking starts only when those Guests are arriving. I always spend some time in planning a wholesome menu when Guests are arriving, so that I can be prepared to make some special dishes for the Guests ( yes, yes, I wanna be a Good Host! ).  Sometimes I run out of Ideas or my mind becomes blank in those busy days. Hence I have started putting my Ideas as part of these Menu Plan Series in my blog, so that these Menu Plan Ideas will be handy and I can make them instantaneously also when those Guests are knocking on the door.

Do you  have any Menu Plan Idea or your Favorite Menu to make any day Special? Please share with me I will publish it here.

Here is the piled up Menu Plan Ideas in Different Categories. Njoy!

Vegetarian:

• Comforting Menu for a Freezing Cold Day
• 
  

Eggarian:

• Weekend Rescue Menu

Non-Vegetarian:

Festive Menus:

• Ugadi Festive Menu

More are coming stay Tuned or Check here  Menu Plan Ideas.


take care until we meet here again!
-Mythreyi

Gutti Vankaya Dry Fry with Sesame & Peanut Filling ( Stuffed Aubergine Fry) { Quick Version }

Gutti Vankaya - the name itself makes my mouth water. I have mentioned several times how much i heart this cute little purple vegetable ( sometimes known as King of vegetables with it's Crown stem on top), I love this vegetable for a reason, you can make several variations with it, Pachadi, Fry, Curry, Rice, Stuffed, Stew, Baked, Roasted, Deep Fry and even with Yogurt. In every form it molds uniquely giving a special taste in every variation it is involved in.



Gutti Vankaya, how much ever it teases our taste buds we got to admit, it is time and effort taking with the lenghty process and several ingredients that are involved in typical traditional recipe. But today I have a good news for the rush time moms in the kitchen, you can get the same super taste with in minutes with this quick stuffing recipe. so save those hours to eat than cook! :-) Today I have tried this recipe with Aubergines ( Small Baby Eggplants), they looked little thin, long and tender compare to our normal Indian Eggplants. So for this recipe, make sure you always get very tender Egg Plants ( that has almost no seeds in it), that is the Key for the success behind this recipe. So here is the recipe, Njoy!

small baby eggplants / Aubergines

Ingredients:
Baby Aubergine / Eggplant - 10
Small Onion - 1/2
Green Chili - 1
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil -  2 Tbsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Curry Leaves - 4 ( optional)
Cilantro - Garnish

Stuffing:
Peanuts - 3 Tbsp
Sesame Seeds - 2 Tbsp
Cilantro -  2 Tbsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp

Preparatory Steps:
Roast Peanuts and Sesame Seeds separately. Sesame Seeds gets roasted quickly so don't mix them with peanuts while roasting. Once they cool off, add peanuts, sesame seeds in small mixie jar or blender grind it coarsely. Add Cilantro and salt grind it until it becomes like fine powder.

Wash eggplants, make slits into 4 quarters and drop them in salt water to avoid any blackening. Once all the eggplants are ready, take each egg plant and stuff the peanut and sesame stuffing in it, tighten it in your palm so that slits will close and seal the stuffing.

Method:

1. Take a non-stick pan and add  2 Tbsp oil to it. Once the oil is hot add cumin seeds and mustard seeds. As they start spluttering add curry leaves.
2. Add finely chopped green chili and onions to the pan and saute them for 2 min. Now add turmeric powder, salt and coriander powder and mix it well. 
3. Add stuffed eggplants to the pan and mix it with onion mixture. Turn the heat to medium low and close the lid and let it cook for 10 min. 
4. Now open lid and check the tenderness of eggplants, turn the eggplant to other side to allow to cook on all sides and add any remaining peanut and sesame stuffing powder to the non-stick pan. Close the lid and cook another 10 min. 
5. Open the lid and now the eggplants must be fully cooked, looking tender and about to start getting roasted. Taste and adjust salt or other seasonings. Garnish with Cilantro and turn off the heat. Let it stand there for 5 min. Serve hot with white rice to get the best flavor out of it. 

Take a Close Peek! Don't you feel like take one and eat right away! 

Check out here for more Gutti Vankaya Recipes

will be back with another traditional recipe with easy steps!
until then take care
-Mythreyi