Kale Paneer

Kale, a dark green leafy vegetable is known for its powerful antioxidant properties. Kale is very high in Vitamin K, Vitamin C, beta carotene and rich in calcium too. Its highly recommended to steam, microwave or stir-fry Kale leaves instead of boiling them. Because boiling tends to decrease the levels of anti-cancer compounds in them. I also tried to steam the Kale leaves while making this "Kale Paneer" side dish. Mostly I ended up making "Kale Poriyal" or "Kale Pappu" whenever i bought fresh Kale leaves before. This time, I decided to make something totally different and mainly to attract my kids. Its easier with a help of Paneer. Substituted Kale instead of Palak, this healthy Kale Paneer is very unique and tastes mostly like "Saag Paneer". So, you can boldly make this Kale Paneer and serve with your softer rotis / chappathis to your kids. My daughter liked it very much and even told me to remember how I made this dish.!!!!

Ingredients

Olive Oil - 3 tbsp

Butter - 1 tbsp

Jeera - 2 tsp

Ginger Garlic Paste - 1.5 tbsp

Turmeric Powder - 2 tsp

Coriander Powder / Dhaniya Powder - 1/2  tbsp

Red Chilly Powder - 2 tsp

Garam masala powder - 1 tbsp

Sugar - 1 pinch

Salt - To Taste

Fresh Paneer Cubes - 16 oz cut into small squares or 20 square pieces in medium size

For Grinding

Kale Leaves - 1 Bunch

Coriander Stems - 1 cup ( preserved in the fridge for grinding purpose)

Ripe Tomato - 2 Medium Size

Onion - 1/2 Small one

Green Chillies - 2 Big Ones

Jeera - 2 tsp

Method

1. Wash the Kale leaves, tomato and cut them into small pieces. Cut the half onion too and keep it ready.
2. On Medium heat in the big kadai, add 2 tsp of Olive Oil. When it gets heated, add jeera, onion pieces,green chillies and saute them for a minute with a small pinch of salt.
3. Add tomatoes next and saute them for another 1-2 minutes till the tomatoes get mashed and slightly cooked.
4. Finally add all the Kale leaves and coriander stems into the Kadai and close it with the lid. Let the veggie cooks with the steam only inside. Make sure that the flame is not on High...
5. After 4-5 minutes, open the lid and check to see whether the Kale leaves reduced in size and get cooked. If its not cooked fully, sprinkle some water into the kadai and cover again with the lid.
6. Allow the Kale leaves to get steam cooked thoroughly. After its completely cooked, transfer the contents into a flat vessel or plate for cooling.
7. Meantime, shallow fry the paneer cubes in a separate kadai and keep the Paneer cubes ready too.
8. After the Kale mixture gets cooled, grind them in a mixer grinder to a fine paste.
9. Let the grounded Kale mix cools down.
10. In the same kadai, add 3 tbsp of Olive Oil. When it gets heated, add jeera seeds and ginger garlic paste to the oil.
11. Fry them nicely till the raw smell of ginger garlic paste goes off.
12. Then, add turmeric powder, corainder powder, dry red chilly powder, garam masala powder and fry them for a minute.
13. Then, add the grounded Kale mixture into the kadai. Add required amount of salt and a pinch of sugar too to the mix in the kadai.
14. Mix them well once and cover the lid of the kadai.
15. Let them cook with the steam inside. In the middle, open the lid and stir the Kale mix and cover again.
16. Continue the process for 5-6 minutes till you are satisfied with the texture of the kale mix and its consistency.
17. Finally add the shallow fried paneer cubes into the kale mix and stir again.
18. Cover the lid again and let them steam cook for another 2-3 minutes.
19. Switch off the flame and allow the Kale Paneer to settle down for sometime.
20. Then serve this highly nutritous side dish with your softer rotis / Chappathis.

Tips

If you dont like the slight bitter taste of the kale leaves, add half cup of spinach / palak leaves and reduce the quantity of kale leaves in the grounded mixture.

Add little cream on the top of the Kale Paneer just before serving. This is just to make it look attractive in parties. Otherwise, keep the spicy taste of the "Kale Paneer" as it is.

Indo Chinese - Veg Egg Fried Rice - NO MSG ( No Ajinomotto )

One Egg contains 6 gms of high quality protein and nine essential amino acids. Egg Yolk contains an important nutrient called "Choline" which helps regulate the brain, nervous system and cardiovascular system. Eggs contain natural Vitamin D, very less saturated fat and eggs even help preventing breast cancer. There are so many good reasons for having Eggs in day-to-day life. Though i am a vegetarian, I make this delicious, healthy, nutritious Veggie Egg Fried Rice for my family. Preparation of this Veggie Egg fried rice is almost the same as the preparation of "Veg fried Rice - Indo Chinese". But at the end, I added crushed and sauteed egg pieces into the veg fried rice.

Ingredients

Same as for the "Veggie Fried Rice" PLUS

4 Eggs

Method

Same as for the "Veggie Fried Rice" but at the end,

1. In a separate pan, add a teaspoon of Olive Oil. When it gets heated, break four eggs and pour them into the pan.
2. Add a teaspoon of milk, little salt and black pepper powder to the eggs in the pan.
3. On medium heat, slowly stir them in the kadai and break them into tiny pieces ( like egg burji).
4. Finally add them into the Veggie fried Rice and mix thoroughly.

Indo Chinese - Veg Fried Rice NO MSG ( No Ajinomotto)

On a cloudy rainy day, its not so interesting to make Sambar, Pappu or any kind of regular food with white rice. Wanted to make something different for lunch. Veg Fried Rice always comes to my mind while making a single complete meal for my kids. Whenever I went to restaurants, I never failed to order Veg Fried Rice. Somehow i got attracted to this veg fried rice since my childhood. If you have the right ingredients for this rice, it comes very tasty. Generally I don't add MSG ( Ajinomotto) in any of my Chinese preparations.

Ingredients

Basmathi Rice - 1.5 Cups

Olive Oil - 3 tbsp

Carrots - 1 Small One ( Cut into very small cubes )

Beans - 10 Medium Size ( Cut into very small cubes )

Fresh Peas or frozen peas - 1 Handful

Cabbage - 1 Cup ( Nicely shredded into thin slices )

Green Capsicum - 1 Small One or 1//2 medium size ( Cut into thin slices )

Spring Onions - 5 stems ( Cut into small squares )

Bean Sprouts - 1 Cup

Garlic Pods - 5  ( Nicely cut into thin pieces )

Salt - To Taste

Black Pepper Powder - 1 tbsp

Soy Sauce - 1 tbsp

Method

1. Wash the Basmati Rice and cook it in an electrical cooker or any other cooker. For 1 Cup of Basmati Rice, add 3/4 th of water to it. I added 2.5 cups of water to 1.5 cups of Basmati Rice.
2. On medium heat, in a big round bottomed kadai or Wok, add Olive Oil first.
3. When it gets heated, add the crushed garlic pods. Fry it for a minute.
4. Then, add the spring onions, green capsicum in order and fry them with a pinch of salt for 1-2 minutes.
5. Add carrots, beans, sprouts, peas, cabbage in order and fry them for 2 minutes.
6. Then, cover the kadai with a lid for just 2-3 minutes. Don't add water at any stage into the Wok / Kadai. No water is required in this process.
7. All the veggies get cooked with the steam inside the Kadai / Wok.
8. Take out the lid after 3 minutes and add black pepper powder and fry them for another 4-5 minutes till you see the vegetables cooked and fried three fourth.
9. After that, add the cooked Basmati Rice into the veggie mix. Add required amount of salt to the rice and mix the veggies and rice thoroughly till everything gets mixed. Fry them carefully so that we don't mash the Basmati Rice.
10. Finally add the Soy Sauce to the fried rice and mix them once more and fry the rice for 2 more minutes.
11. Switch off the flame. Now the aroma of the Indo Chinese veg fried rice fills the entire place.
12. Absolutely ready to be served along with a good side of Gobi Manchurian or Veg Balls in Garlic Sauce. ( if you have made some!!!) . If not, I am okay to eat this yummy rice just with tomato ketchup.

Tips

If you make this fried rice using Basmati Rice, it tastes very good than with the normal sona masoori rice.

Don't add too much Soy Sauce or Salt to this fried Rice. I don't add Vinegar to the fried rice..

If everything is added in right proportions and added at the right time, people would ask you from which restaurant you got this rice.

Coconut Rice / Thengai Sadam / Kobbari Annam

One of the simplest, tastiest mixed rice we like is the coconut rice. With fresh coconut flakes and fried groundnuts, cashewnuts, its taste is heavenly.  Fresh coconut is rich in protein, destroys intestinal parasites that we get from eating infected food, good for kidney and urinary bladder problems, prevents goiter ( non toxic thyroid ) because of its organic iodine content. So, each and every mixed rice contains its unique health benefits. With a good side of Aviyal or potato fry, bindi fry or any fry, it makes a full meal. As its not too spicy, my kids love this coconut rice even without a side.

Ingredients

Sona Masoori Rice / Basmati Rice - 1.5 Cups ( I used Adora Basmati Rice )

Fresh Coconut Flakes or frozen coconut - 1 cup

Salt - To Taste

For Tempering

Olive Oil - 2 tbsp

Hing / Asafoetida - 1 tsp

Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Urad Dal / Ulutham Paruppu / Mina Pappu - 1 tbsp

Channa Dal / Kadalai paruppu / Senaga Pappu - 1 tbsp

Raw groundnuts - 1 Handful

Cashew Nuts - 2 tbsp ( optional )

Curry Leaves - 1 stem ( if you have , i don't have!!)

Dry Red Chillies - 3 or 4 medium ones

Green Chilly - 1 medium one

Grated Ginger - 1 tsp

Method

1. First wash the rice and cook it in a pressure cooker for 3 whistles and keep it aside. Let it cools down.
2. On the round bottomed big kadai, add oil first. When it gets heated, add mustard seeds, Hing, Jeera first.
3. When it sputters, add the dals, groundnuts and fry them carefully on medium heat so that they don't turn black.
4. After that, add dry red chillies, green chilly, grated ginger, curry leaves, cashew nuts into the kadai and fry them slightly.
5. After its all sauteed, switch off the flame. On the same vessel, add the cooked rice slowly from the pressure cooker and spread the rice uniformly in the round bottomed vessel.
6. After adding all the rice, keep its for 2 minutes openly.
7. Then, add 1 tbsp of salt and mix the rice with all the nuts, tadka nicely.
8. Finally add the fresh coconut to the rice and mix upside down.
9. Now the tasty coconut rice is ready to serve.

Tips

If you are making for potlucks or parties, you can add more cashew nuts generously to the coconut rice which makes it so rich and yummy.

Don't overcook the rice as the coconut rice becomes pasty.

Try to add a dash of Hing / Asafoetida at the end and mix once again. It gives an excellent flavour to the coconut rice at the end and retains its good flavour definitely before serving.

Spicy Onion Groundnut Chutney / Vengayam Kadalai potta kara chutney

Ingredients

Onion - 1 Medium One

Groundnuts - 1/2 cup

Dry Red Chillies - 4 or 5 medium ones

Green Chillies - 1 Medium one

Tamarind - One small piece

Hing / Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Jeera - 1 tsp

Salt - To Taste

Olive Oil - 1 tbsp

For Tempering

Olive Oil - 1 tbsp

Mustard Seeds  - 1 tsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Urad Dal  / Ulutham Paruppu / Mina Pappu - 1 tsp

Dry Red Chilly - 1 Big One

Curry Leaves  - 4 or 5 ( if you have )

Method

1. On Medium Heat, add 1 tbsp of oil. When it gets heated, add hing / Asafoetida, jeera, raw groundnuts.
2. Fry them till groundnuts get sauteed fully and crunchy. Then, add the dry red chillies, green chilly, onion to the vessel.
3. Fry all the contents till onions become translucent and get cooked.
4. Finally add the tamarind piece into the vessel itself and fry all of them for 2 minutes.
5. Switch off the heat. After it gets cooled, grind it in the mixie with required amount of salt and little water.
6. On the same vessel, add 1 tbsp of Olive Oil and add all the ingredients for tempering.
7. After tempering is done, pour them into the grounded chutney. Mix them thoroughly.
8. Add some water if its too thick .
9. Now the spicy Onion Groundnut Chutney is ready with a punch and can be served with Idlies, Dosas, or any tiffin.

Tips

Don't add more water to the chutney if you are making them in huge quantity. Add water just before serving. Don't make it too watery...

Check to see that the groundnuts do not get too fried and turn black. It definitely spoils the taste of the chutney. Saute it to the desired level only.

Veggie Noodles - Indo Chinese With NO MSG

Vegetable Noodles are easy to make and its a good healthy meal for kids. With a side of 2 veggie Spring Rolls and a milkshake, its a complete meal. Today, I wanted to deviate from our regular indian food for a change. Decided to make this Veggie Noodles for lunch. As I dont like to add MSG to my kids food, i did not add it to this recipe.

Ingredients

Vegetable Noodles - 1 pack ( Got from an Asian Grocery Store )

Chopped Garlic Pods - 5

Crushed Ginger - 1 tsp

Spring Onion - 6 Stems

Carrot - 1/2 sliced into thin strips

Beans - 5 or 6 sliced into thin strips

Cabbage - 1 Cup nicely sliced

Fresh Peas  or frozen peas - 1 Handful

Green Capsicum - 1/2 cut into thin slices

Salt - To Taste

Olive Oil - 2 tbsp

Soy Sauce - 2 tsp

Black Pepper Powder - 1 tsp

Chilli Garlic Sauce - 1/2 tsp ( optional )

Method

1. Wash all the vegetables and cut it into desired shapes. Chop the Spring Onions, garlic, ginger and keep everything ready.
2. In a separate vessel, add water enough for the noodles to get covered. Let the water boil for 4-5 minutes. Then add a drop of Olive Oil and add the dried noodles from the packet. Cover the lid for the noodles to get cooked
3. In the Sauting pan, add oil first. When its heated, add crushed garlic, ginger, bottom portion of the spring onion pieces and saute for a minute.
4. Then add all the thin sliced veggies into the pan and saute it with a pinch of salt till everything gets cooked.
5. After the veggies are cooked and sauted nicely, add the pepper powder to it.
6. Meantime, check to see if the noodles are cooked. If its done, drain the water and wash it with cold water and drain again.
7. After its drained fully, add the noodles to the Sauting Pan now.
8. Add sufficient amount of salt, chilli garlic sauce, soy sauce to the Veggie Noodles now.
9. Mix everything patiently till the noodles get mixed with all the veggies and become separate.
10. Finally add the remaining Spring Onions to the veggie noodles and saute for another 2 minutes.
11. Switch off the flame. Serve it with spring rolls or Gobi Manchurian to your kids.

Tips

Try to take out the noodles from the cooking vessel at the right stage. Dont overcook the noodles which make them mashy and spoil the texture of the veggie noodles.

Mixing is an important task in this process. Be patient while mixing the noodles with the sauted veggies.

Variations

You can add fried tofu or shallow fried paneer to this noodles if they like them in their noodles.

Mixed Vegetable Araichuvitta Sambar / Kadamba Sambar

Kadamba Sambar is a special sambar made on special occasions and contains more vegetables and lentils in it, and its very filling too. With a good side curry or aviyal or vadai, it tastes very good. Uses of making this kadamba sambar are countless in our house. I can either serve this kadamba sambar separately with a good curry or make a quick kadamba Rice for everyone at one shot or serve this Kadamba sambar with Idly, Dosai, Pongal during tiffin time. So I tend to make this sambar very often at home.

Ingredients

Cooked Toor Dal / Thuvaram Paruppu / Kandhi Pappu - 1 Cup

Tamarind Juice - 1.5 cup

Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp

Sambar Powder - 2 tbsp

Hing / Asafoetida - 1 Dash

Mustard Seeds - 2 tsp

Jeera - 1 tsp

Fenugreek Seeds / Vendhayam / Menthilu - 1 tsp

Curry Leaves - 1 stem ( if you have )

Olive Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt - To Taste

Sugar or Jaggery - 1 small teaspoon

Vegetables List

Small Onion - 10 or 12 

Ripe Tomato - 1 Medium Size

Chow Chow - 1/2

Carrot - 1 Small Size

Drumstick - 1 Medium One

Brinjals - 4 Small Size or 2 medium ones

Potato - 1 Medium Size

Beans - 5 or 6

Frozen  Peas or fresh peas - 1 Handful

For Grinding

Coriander Seeds - 2.5 tbsp

Fresh Coconut or dry coconut powder - 1 tbsp

Dry Red Chillies - 4 or 5

Black Pepper - 4 or 5 seeds

Method

1. First wash the Thuvar Dal and cook it in a pressure cooker. After its cooked, mash it thoroughly and keep it aside.
2. Soak a lemon size tamarind in a luke warm water and extract the tamarind juice without any of its dirt and pieces and keep it ready.
3. Wash all the vegetables and cut them into smaller cubes. Cut the drumsticks into five medium size parts. Keep all the veggies ready.
4. Now, in a heavy bottomed vessel, add little oil and add coriander seeds, dry red chillies, black pepper seeds and coconut. Slightly fry them till you get a nice aroma on a medium flame. After it cools down, grind them together in a mixer grinder and keep it separate. Dont keep it open.
5. In the same vessel, on medium heat first add the Olive Oil. When it gets heated, add the Hing  / Asafoetida , mustard seeds, jeera , fenugreek seeds ( Vendhayam / Methi seeds ) , one dry red chilly, Curry leaves.
6. When tempering is done, add all the small onions into the vessel. Add a pinch of salt to it. Fry them for 2-3 minutes till they get fried and look semi cooked.
7. Now add the ripe tomato pieces into the vessel. Fry them nicely till it becomes soggy and pasty.
8. Add all the powders now to the mix in the vessel. Mix and fry them for a minute.
9. Add all the cut veggies into the vessel now. Add a pinch of sugar only. No salt at this stage too.
10. Fry all the contents in the vessel ( all veggies mixed with the powders ) for a minute. Close the vessel with a lid and let them cook with the steam inside for 2 minutes. Keep the heat on a low flame.
11. After 2 minutes, open the lid and add the extracted tamarind juice into the vessel.
12. Add little more water making it half the vessel. Add salt at this stage into the vessel.
13. Mix everything once more and close the lid. Let the sambar cooks and and you will smell a nice aroma coming out of the closed vessel. Now your kadamba sambar is in good form.
14. After 8 - 10 minutes, open the vessel and check to see if the vegetables are cooked fully. If not, close it and let the process continues.
15. After its all cooked, you will notice that the sambar would have become little thicker and the quantity would have reduced little lower in the vessel.
16. Then add the mashed dal water to the sambar. Make sure that the heat is on medium level only not on High.
17. Add the grounded powder also into the Kadamba Sambar.
18. Let the Sambar cooks for 3-4 minutes. Then switch off the flame and let the sambar settles down completely with all the spices, veggies and Dal.
19. After that, the tasty kadamba Sambar is ready to serve with Rice or in any form.

Variations

You can add any vegetables of your choice but try to cut the veggies into uniform shapes.

You can add more dry red chillies if you want the sambar to be more spicy.

You can generously add 1 or 2 tbsp of ghee on the top of Sambar before serving if its served on special occasions.

Tips

If you dont cook the dal softly, the sambar consistency will not be proper. Make sure that the Toor dal is cooked completely.

Dont cut the vegetables in bigger form for this Sambar. If its in medium size, they cook faster and easy for the kids too to eat all the veggies if given as Kadamba Rice. ( They wont be given a chance to pick their unwanted veggies and keep it in the side while eating!!!)