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Jackfruit seeds, drumstick leaves sabzi

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Ingredients:

25 Jackfruit seeds
1 cup drumstick leaves, separated from the stem
2 tbsps oil
½  tsp Mustard seeds
1/3 tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp red chilli powder
1tsp coriander powder
½ tsp garam masala powder
1 onion cut into small pieces
½ inch piece ginger cut fine
1 green chilli
Salt to taste
6 cloves of garlic
1 tsp aniseeds (saunf)
1 cup water

Instruction:

  • Pressure cook the jackfruit seeds, after lightly hitting them with a stone to crack the outer covering, for about 7 minutes. Cool, remove the outer covering and slice them into two.
  • Add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and garam masala powder, salt and a little water to the jackfruit seed, mix well and keep aside.
  • Pound the aniseeds and garlic cloves together and keep aside.
  • Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan, add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add cumin seeds, then the cut onion, green chilli and ginger. Stir and after a minute, add the aniseeds and garlic.
  • Add the drumstick leaves, stir for two minutes and mix in the jackfruit seeds. Add water, cover and cook for about ten minutes, checking and stirring in between.
  • It is a great accompaniment for both chapatis and steamed rice.
All Posts, Sides

Pumpkin leaves sabzi

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I love making sabzis with leaves. In Belgaum we get many types of leaves from the vegetable vendors. But I have not seen pumpkin leaves with them so far. When we got a pumpkin plant in our backyard, my maid told me that she cooks them at home. So I took instructions from her and prepared it. It is crunchy and has a very different flavour, which I liked.

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of very finely cut pumpkin leaves after removing the veins
  • ½ cup grated coconut
  • 5 flakes of garlic finely cut
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • ½ tsp mustard seeds
  • ½ tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tbsp raw rice
  • 2 dried red chillies broken to pieces
  • ½ tsp turmeric powder
  • Salt to taste

Instruction:

  • The leaves have to be cut really fine for this preparation as they are fibrous.
  • Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add cumin seeds and the raw rice. When the rice puffs up, add broken red chillies, turmeric powder and the cut leaves.
  • Add salt, stir for a few seconds, reduce the flame and cover the pan. Keep stirring in between; usually no additional water is required.
  • When the leaves are almost cooked (takes about six minutes), add the grated coconut and finely cut garlic.
  • Stir well, let it cook for two more minutes, remove from fire. Serve with steamed rice and dal or kadhi.
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Cream of mushroom soup

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Cream of mushroom soup
Cream of mushroom soup

Makes about 3 servings

Ingredients

250 gm sliced button mushrooms
1 large onion coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
1 tablet vegetable stock
1/2 liter full cream
1 tbsp fresh herbs like thyme, chives, rosemary and/or basil

Instruction

  • Dissolve the vegetable stock tablet in 100 ml hot water and keep aside.
  • Add olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, toss the onions and crushed garlic until the onions are soft and light brown.
  • Add mushrooms and cook just until soft (don’t overcook or they lose their texture!).
  • Add the vegetable stock followed by cream and reduce heat to minimum. Simmer for about 5 minutes and garnish with fresh herbs.
  • Enjoy with freshly baked bread or crackers!

 

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Jackfruit sabzi- Konkani style

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Out of the different types of jackfruit sabzis I make, this is my favorite. I learned it from my neighbor, an awesome cook, in Manipal in the early eighties. The aroma that emanates while it is being cooked takes me to another dimension.

Ingredients:

3 cups skinned, pressure cooked tender jackfruit cut into cubes
1 cup grated coconut
3 dried red chillies
1 tbsp udad dal
1 tbsp coriander seeds
½ tbsp fenugreek seeds
A small ball of Tamarind
1 ½ tbsps Jaggery
2 tbsps coconut oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 bay leaf
Salt to taste

Instruction:

  • Skin the tender jackfruit, cut into large pieces and pressure cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Cool and open the pressure cooker. Take out the jackfruit pieces and cut them into small cubes. Do not discard the water in which it was cooked.
  • Break the red chillies into three pieces each and lightly fry them in a little bit of oil.
  • Fry the udad dal, coriander seeds and fenugreek seeds in oil till the color changes and aroma spreads.
  • Grind together the grated coconut, fried red chilies, udad dal, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, tamarind and jaggery.
  • Add the cubed, cooked jackfruit pieces to the ground masala and pound them together. Add the water in which jackfruit was cooked and salt, mix well, put on fire and simmer for five minutes.
  • Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, when they splutter, add the bay leaf, and pour over the sabzi.
  • Tastes awesome with steamed rice.
All Posts, Sides

Sri Lankan Raw Jackfruit Curry

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In Sri Lanka we had rotti and tender jackfruit dry sabzi from a road side shack. My husband liked it very much. Yesterday he asked me to make the same preparation as there was tender jackfruit at home.

Since I had watched our Sri Lankan host while cooking at her house, I have a basic idea of Sri Lankan cooking. So I ventured to prepare it, with some trepidation. And I was so happy when I got a five star rating from my better half!

Ingredients:

2 cups of skinned, pressure cooked (for 4 minutes), and shredded tender jackfruit
1 large onion thinly sliced
1 twig of curry leaves
2 dried red chillies, broken into two
2 tbsps of mustard oil
1 bay leaf
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp fenugreek seeds
¼ tsp crushed pepper
¼ tsp red chilli powder
Salt to taste

Instruction:

  • Heat the oil, when it starts smoking, add the bay leaf, jeera, fenugreek seeds, and crushed pepper
  • Add the sliced onion and curry leaves, reduce the flame and keep stirring.
  • When the onion lightly browns, add the shredded jackfruit, salt and red chilli powder.
  • Keep stirring till it turns brown and crispy.

 

All Posts, Mains, Sides

Jackfruit Curry

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So the fridge is empty and I go to buy veggies and there’s a, what? RAW JACKFRUIT!!!!! Like, wow!!
Now this just HAD to be made! Even better with a friend joining for lunch! So kathal-alu sabji in mustard oil and with coconut milk, a concoction that turned out very successful, paired with urad dal khichdi and scrambled eggs Gordon Ramsay style.

Ingredients:

4 cups of skinned, cleaned jackfruit cut into cubes
2 potatoes peeled and cubed
1 tbsp cashew nuts
1-2 cups Coconut milk
1 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
½ tsp crushed pepper
1 small onion sliced
2 green chillies
6 flakes of crushed garlic
½ tsp turmeric powder
1/3 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
Mustard oil (or oil of your choice)
Salt to taste

Instruction:

– Fry cashewnuts in ghee till golden brown. Set aside.
– Pressure cook jackfruit with 1 cup water for 2 whistles, cool, open and drain.
– Heat ample mustard oil, fry chopped potatoes. Set the potatoes aside on a paper towel.
– Add a stick of cinnamon, coarsely crushed pepper, and a bay leaf into the hot mustard oil,
add onions, green chilies and crushed garlic .
– Add turmeric, chili, coriander powder.
– Add jackfruit, let cook for a few minutes, add the potatoes, let cook for some time – it
becomes soft and creamy this way.
– Add coconut milk, let simmer for a few seconds, add salt to taste, mix in cashews and serve!
Note: Can substitute cashews with prawns for a delightfully tasty non-veg version. Just fry them in the same oil after the potatoes and before the onions.

All Posts, Easy Recipes, Sides

Fresh turmeric, carrot instant pickle

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Turmeric root has a peppery, slightly bitter flavour. It has been part of traditional herbal medicine for thousands of years, recommended by practitioners as a remedy for many ailments. Chewing the fresh turmeric root has many positive effects on your health.

Curcumin in turmeric has natural anti-inflammatory properties. It reduces the activity of enzymes involved in inflammatory conditions that include arthritis and gastrointestinal disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome and ulcerative colitis.

It is important to remember that it could interact with some medications, such as blood thinners, drugs that lower stomach acid and diabetes medicines.

Ingredients:

½ cup thin strips of peeled turmeric (julienne)
¾ cup thin strips of peeled carrot
Salt to taste
1 tsp split mustard seeds (rye kuriya)
1 tbsp lemon juice

Instruction:

Mix all the ingredients and serve with rice or chapatis.

All Posts, Breakfast

Mathri (Flaky biscuits)

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This is a ubiquitous North Indian savory item that I was exposed to after my marriage and my mother in law packed some for us very lovingly. They are prepared during festivals and also carried during journeys as they stay fresh for many days. It can be a substitute for breakfast when taken with pickle. They are great accompaniments for tea/coffee too.

Ingredients:

2 cups refined flour (or 1 cup wheat flour and 1 cup refined flour) (for 40 small, 3 cm diameter mathris)
¾ cup ghee or oil
1 ½ tsp ajwain (carom seeds)
¾ cup water
Oil for frying

Instructions:

  • Add salt and ghee to the refined flour and mix them together till they resemble bread crumbs.
  • Add the water slowly and knead into soft dough. Cover and keep aside for ten minutes.

  • Heat the oil in a thick bottomed pan.
  • Divide the dough into two portions. Spread the dough into round, with a thickness slightly less than ½ centimetre. Poke the whole surface with a fork. Cut into small rounds.

  • When oil starts smoking, reduce the flame to medium and slip the rounds into the oil. Turn them over when they brown, drain when the other side also browns.
  • Cool and store.
All Posts, Desserts, Easy Recipes

Banana Bread

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Anyone who’s eaten banana breads knows how addictive these are. And as if they aren’t good enough already, try making a French toast out of them! This recipe is as easy as it gets, all you need to do is throw the ingredients together, mix and bake it. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

¾ cup jaggery  (or 2/3 cup brown sugar)
¼ cup refined oil (optional: makes the cake more moist)
1 egg
2 mashed bananas
2 tbsp milk
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup raisins, chopped walnuts or chocolate chips (optional)
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
A pinch of nutmeg powder
A pinch of salt

Method:
  • Preheat oven to 180°C and grease a 7’x3′ loaf tin with butter.
  • Whisk all ingredients together until smooth
  • Bake for 40-60 min until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
All Posts, Desserts

Potato halwa (Aloo ka halwa)

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Once during our visit to my in-laws’ place many years back, my mother-in-law told that she was making potato halwa. I thought she must be joking. Coming from Kerala, I couldn’t imagine one can make halwa with potato. But I was in for a surprise, and with the first morsel I tasted, I was hooked! I fell in love with the mild flavour and the tongue tingling taste. She used water in her recipe, but today when I prepared it, I added a bit of milk just to get the special feeling of a sweet prepared on Holi festival day.

Ingredients

2 cups boiled, peeled, mashed potato
2 tbsps ghee
¾ cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 ½ cup water
½ tsp cardamom powder
1 tbsp broken cahews
1 tbsp raisins
4 badams slivered

Instruction

  • Heat a thick bottomed pan and add the mashed potato and on medium flame, keep stirring.

  • After about ten minutes, add the cashew peices.
  • When the potato becomes brown in color and the ghee starts separating from the sides, add the sugar , after three or four minutes, add the milk and water.

  • Add raisins, cardamom powder, mix well and cover the pan, reduce the flame to low. Open and stir in between.
  • When it becomes halwa consistency, remove from fire.

  • Garnish with badam slivers and serve.