Gujarati Kadhi (कढी)

Kadhi is nothing but gram flour mixed boiled and simmered buttermilk with aromatic spices tempered in oil or ghee. This is very simple and easy to make dish. Main ingredient for this dish is yougurt or thick buttermilk and gram flour. There are two main variation of this dish one with salt & sugar and one with only salt.  I like both variation but in summer I like to eat sweet kadhi with plain rice, bhindi fry and moong daal fry.

Ingredients:-
(1). 4 cup yougurt
(2). 2 tablespoon gram flour or chickpea flour
(3). salt to taste
(4). 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
(5). 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
(6). pinch of asafoetida
(7). 3 clove piece
(8). 2 small cinamon sticks
(9). 3 whole black pepper
(10). 2 dry red chili
(11). 2 teaspoon chopped ginger
(12). 2 tablespoon chopped coriander
(13). 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
(14). 7-8 leaves of curry leaves
(15). handful of chopped coriander leaves
(16). 1 tablespoon oil
(17) 2 cup water

Recipe:-
In deep vessle or bowl mix yougurt, water and salt and make buttermilk.  Now in small bowl take gram and add some water and mix until there are no lumps, if some reason if you are not able to remove lumps in besan mix, use strainer to remove lumps. Now add this besan into buttermilk and stir it well.

Start the stove and put the Kadhi mixture to boil on medium flame.  While buttermilk is cooking, on different stove for tempering heat oil and add mustard seeds, cumin seeds. Once seeds started cracking or spluttering switch off the stove and add asafoetida, clove, cinamon sticks, black peppers, dry red chilis ,sesame seeds, chopped ginger and curry leaves into it. All these spices will bring very nice and strong aroma. Add this spiced flovored oil into kadhi mixture. Cook/Simmer kadhi on medium flame for about 5-7  minutes. Switch of stove. Garnish with coriander leaves.

This is optional step. If you like sweet and sour taste like I do add 2-3 teaspoon of sugar into hot kadhi and mix it well.

Serve hot with pulav or biryani. I love to eat kadhi with khichdi and mango pickle, I prefer sweet kadhi with khicdi.

Tip:-  Some people like turmeric in kadhi, so add half teaspoon turmeric while making buttermilk. This will make kadhi yellowish in color. For tempering instead of oil you can use ghee too. It will make kadhi more creamy and rich in taste.

Vegetable Cutlet (वेजिटेबल कटलेट )

Other day I was wondering what should I make for afternoon snack which I can use for my dinner and while checking on my food pantry I saw some potatoes, carrots, green peas, green pepper , green beans and I got an idea to make vegetable cutlet. Vegetable cutlet is great for appetizer , you can make this in weekend/holiday afternoon for your family. You can use this cutlet as burger patties on dinner roll and make your own mini burger for your lunch or dinner.  That is what generally I do, when I make this cutlet I make some more so that I can use it for my burger during dinner.

Ingredients:-

(1). 2 medium sized boiled potato

(2). 1 finely grated carrot

(3). 4 finely chopped green beans ( fresh or frozen)

(4). half grated or finely chopped green pepper

(5). 1/4 cup fresh or frozen green peas

(6). 1.4 cup chopped cilantro

(7). 1 small finely chopped green chili

(8). 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

(9). 2 teaspoon coriander powder

(10). 1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

(11). pinch of asofoetida

(12). salt to taste

(13). 2 teaspoon sesame seed

(14). 2 cup croutons 

(15). half cup rice flour

(16). oil for shallow frying

(17). 3-4 tablespoon  rice flour( for coating purpose)

Recipe:-

Using grinder grind the croutons. Powder should be little coarse so don't grind too much. Peel the potato and using masher or hand mash it up. Add all other vegetables in the same bowl (from 2 to 7). Add all spices in the same  bowl as vegetables. Now add crouton powder and rice flour in that bowl and mix everything well. Knead dough, if needed add 1 table spoon of oil.  Now make equal size small-medium size balls( around 15-16 balls) from dough and press little to make flat round. You can make cutlet of any shape you like. Coat the both sides of cutlets with rice flour. This will make both side more crunchy and crispy.

Start the stove on medium flame and put greased non-stick pan on it. Once pan become warm arrange flatted or shaped cutlet in pan next to each other with one inch apart for shallow frying. Once both side becomes little pink brownish , add 1 table spoon oil around the cutlets and shallow fry it. Cook for 4-5 minutes, until both sides are cooked and looked medium brownish in color. 

Vegetable Cutlet Shallow Frying

Serve cutlet hot with ketchup, mint or coriander chutney. You can serve milk shake on side instead of tea or coffee.

Vegetable Cutlet

I used shallow fry vs deep fry so that it is more healthy but you can certainly deep fry these cutlets.

Tips:-

• You can also add some finely grated cabbage or couple table spoon of grated beet root. 
• You can make Aloo Chaat with these patties.
• You can use  these cutlets as patties to make your own veggie burger.
• You can use these cutlets in your Ragda to make Ragda Patties.
• If rice flour is not handy you can use corn flour. 
• Instead coating the cutlet only in rice flour you can also do following
• first dip the cutlet in little milk(1/4 cup)
• then coat with rice flour and crouton powder.

Khichdi ( खिचडी)

Khichdi is very popular Gujarati dish.  In my home my mom used to prepare khichdi with kadhi. Sometimes instead of kadhi , she will make potato and eggplant curry. This is very easy make and healthy vegetarian dish. It mainly consists of rice and lentils( daal). Generally for khichdi tuver daal is used but one can use yellow moong daal or green split mung daal.

This is a very unique dish , it can go with pretty much any side. You can serve khichdi with warm ghee. You can serve it with fresh yogurt or raita. In village people eat with warm milk.You can also serve it with mango pickle and papads( fried or roasted). I love eating khichdi with kadhi and mango pickle.

Ingredients:-
(1). 2 cup tuver daal soaked in warm water(approx 15-20 min)
(2). 11/4 cup soaked rice (approx 15 min)
(3). 3 tablespoon oil
(4) 1 teaspoon mustard seed
(5). 1 teaspoon asofoetida
(6). 2 whole red chilies
(7).  3 cloves
(8). 4 whole black pepper
(9). 1 star seed (anise seed)
(10). 2 small cinnamon sticks
(11). salt to taste
(12). 1 teaspoon red chili powder
(13). half teaspoon turmeric powder
(14). 1 teaspoon coriander powder

Recipe:-
Remove extra water from tuver daal and rice. In pressure cooker warm oil and add mustard seeds, once seeds starts cracking add asofoetida, whole red chilies, cloves, black pepper , anise seed and cinnamon stick. Cook for minute. Now add daal and rice in spiced oil, add 4 cup of water. Stir well. Now add salt, turmeric powder, coriander powder and chili powder. Stir again to make sure all masala are mixed well in water. Close the pressure cooker and cook until 6-7 whistles. Take cooker from the stove.

Wait for cooker become cool about another 15-20 mins before opening.  Serve Khichdi with your favorite side.

Lotus Seeds Fry (मखाना फ्राई ) OR Fried Makhana

Makhana or Lotus Seeds you can find it in Indian store. They are really good snack item. It is really good for kids. You can make this crunchy snack in no time, may be less than five minutes.

Ingredients:-
(1). one cup makhana (lotus seed)
(2). salt to taste
(3). 1 teaspoon red chili powder (optional)
(4). 3-4 teaspoon crushed sugar
(5). 1 cup oil or ghee for frying.

Recipe:-
Take oil in pan and make it warm. Add makhana into it and fry it for minute or so. All we want lotus seeds to become crispy and crunchy. Take them out in bowl.  Make sure makhana don't turn too brown. Now sprinkle salt, chili powder and sugar in bowl and mix well.

Voila!! your snack is ready. Start some movie or sports and start munching your popcorn style fried lotus seeds.To make your snack more interesting fry half cup peanuts and add into fried makhana and mix well. If needed add spices according to taste.

Makahan Fry or Lotus Seeds Fry

Tip:-
If you are making this snack for kids I would suggest fry makhana or lotus seed using ghee ( purified butter).
Instead of using peanuts you can add some salted mixed nuts like cashew, almonds, Brazilian nuts etc.

Besan Halwa With Dates(बेसन हलवा)

While growing up my mom used to make Besan Sheero or Halwa for us and it was my favorite sweet dish. Now same dish my mother makes for her grand kid, the difference is she uses Dates to sweeten the Halwa in place of sugar. So it is more healthy.

Ingredients:-

(1). 2 tablespoon chickpea flour(Besan)

(2). 5 tablespoon  dry nut powder (cashew, almond, walnut, pistachio etc)

(3). 3-4 tablespoon ghee

(4). 1 cup milk

(5). 8 peeled and pitted Medjool dates
(6). pinch of saffron

Recipe:-
Chopped dates into small pieces. In cup take milk and add chopped dates init. Boil the milk in microwave for 2 minutes.

In nonstick pan take 2 tablespoon of ghee. Once ghee melts completely add Besan flour and mix Besan in ghee so that there is no lumps. Stir constantly. Cook for Besan for 2 minutes on medium flame. Add dry nut powder init and cook for another 2 minutes. Add boiled milk into cooking Halwa, stir milk so it doesn't stick and mix well in Halwa. Add saffron and mix well into Halwa. At this point add one table spoon of ghee. Stir Halwa and let it cook for another 4-5 minutes on low to medium heat.

Switch of stove and serve hot in bowl with some chopped nut on top.

Peeled and Pitted Dates

Besan flour

Mixed Nut Powder

Mixing Besan Flour in Ghee

Adding Nut Powder

Adding Boiled Date Milk

Cooking Nuts with Besan

Adding Saffron

         Cooked Besan Halwa

Besan Halwa

Tips:-
If you are using this for small babies who are 7 months and up , update above recipe with following modifications.

• Drained the boiled date milk using colander before adding in halwa to makesure there is no chunks
• Instead of 1 cup milk take 1.5 cup milk so that Halwa will be like Gujarati Raab ( gravy form) so that babies can swallow easily.
• Either you can avoid nuts or grind nuts to almost paste form before adding in halwa.

Aloo Paratha(आलू पराठा )

Many people love eating potato in any shape and form.  And many of us like to eat paratha. This dish is great combination of both of them. You can eat this in breakfast or dinner. It is really great dish for kids lunch. The basic ingredients for this dish are potato,wheat flour, salt and oil.

Ingredients:-

For dough:-

(1). 2 cup wheat flour

(2). 1 cup chopped coriander 

(3). Salt to taste

(4). 1 teaspoon asafoetida

(5). 1tablespoon oil

(6). 1 teaspoon cumin seed

(7). 1 teaspoon turmeric powder

(8). 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

(9). 3/4 cup water for kneading dough

For filling

(1).  2 boiled peeled mashed potatoes

(2). Salt to taste

(3). Pinch of asafoetida 

(4). 1teaspoon lemon juice

(5). 2 teaspoon coriander  powder

(6). 1finely chopped green chili

(7). 1 tablespoon Chopped coriander leaves

For paratha:-

(1). Wheat flour for rolling

(2). Oil for frying

Recipe:-

Knead paratha dough using all ingredients mentioned for making dough.  Divide kneaded dough into 8 equal pieces and make each piece into round ball.

In one bowl take mashed potatoes and all other ingredients for filling and mix them well.

Using rolling board roll ball into medium round use little wheat flour if think dough is sticking to rolling board. Take 1 tablespoon of filling and put in middle of rolled round. Seal the paratha and roll it one more time until paratha is 1/4 or 1/2 inch thick. Roll it gently and roll from all sides.

Start the stove and  put greased non stick pan. Once pan become warm , put rolled paratha in it. Cook paratha on both side, once both side are showing light brownish mark, add 1 tablespoon of oil around paratha and cook on both side. Reapet same for remaining balls.

Serve paratha with fresh yogurt and green chilies. 

Stuffed Potato Paratha

Tips:-
If you like you can add 1 cup chopped spinach while kneading dough. You can use chopped Methi( Fenugreek) leaves also.
You can use microwave to boil potato, simply put potatoes in microwaveable  bowl with little water and heat it for approx 6-7 min. This time is for 2 potatoes. To check potatoes are cooked or not insert fork and if it goes smoothly in potatoes they are done otherwise cook it for additional time.

You can also use steamer to steam potatoes, simply peeled potato and cut them in big pieces and put in in steamer for 7-10 minutes.

Paneer Paratha(पनीर पराठा)

I love eating anything has paneer in it. Until few months back , I always used to think that to make paneer parathas is a complex job. But after trying by myself I realized it is anything but easy job. 

Ingredients:-

For dough:-

(1). 2 cup whole wheat flour

(2). half cup all purpose flour

(3). salt to taste

(4). pinch of asafoetida

(5). half teaspoon turmeric powder

(6). 1 table spoon oil

(7). half cup water to knead dough

For Fillings:-

(1). 2 cup shredded paneer

(2). 1 cup chopped onions

(3). half cup chopped coriander leaves

(4). salt to taste

(5). 2 teaspoon coriander powder

(6). 1 finely chopped green chili

(7). half teaspoon garam masala

For parathas-

(1). oil or ghee for cooking

(2). wheat flour in bowl 

Recipe:-

Using dough ingredients knead dough for parathas which is soft and smooth. Don't use too much water. The dough should not be sticky.In one bowl take all the ingredients for fillings and mix them well and keep aside.

Dough for Parathas

Divide the dough into 8 equal parts and make balls. Take one dough balls put in wheat flour , make sure ball is coated with flour. Now roll the ball on rolling board. If you think ball is sticking add little oil or more flour on rolling board and keep rolling until it becomes big enough to add paneer filling.

Now add 1.5 table spoon of paneer filling in middle of rolled paratha.

Gather the edges of paratha as shown in figure and seal it on the top.

Once more roll filled paratha with some flour on rolling board. Roll gently from all side. Roll until paratha is half inch thick. I like little thick parathas , that way they don't break the fillings.

Greased non stick or cast iron pan with cooking oil . Start stove and put paratha in it . Wait for one side of paratha to become cook, it will show small brown spots. Turn to other side , once both side has brown marks on it add half table spoon oil and coat both side of paratha nicely. Let it cook for another 1-2 minutes. And take it out from pan.

Serve hot with fresh yogurt or raita . You can also serve with some butter and fresh green chilies. This parathas can be served with mango or vegetable pickle.

Paneer Parathas

Enjoy!!!

Tip:- If you are low on paneer you can use shredded mozzarella cheese. 

Vegetable Biryani (वेजिटेबल बिरयानी)

I ate my very first biryani in one of the restaurant in Florida, I became fan of it. So whenever we went out in Indian Restaurant ,I would make sure I will order this yummy dish. I tried to make at home in pressure cooker, which is exactly not the biryani concept. Because biryani gets cooked in layer on dum which allows the all flavors and spices to blends gradually. So I decided to make this delicious dish in its authentic way, I read few cooking blogs and I really liked the recipe on  rak's kitchen. I used her recipe as my base with few modifications.

Ingredients:-

(1). 4 cup basmati rice

(2). 2 potatoes

(3). 10-12 pieces of cauliflower florets

(4). 1 cup cut green beans

(5). half cup green peas

(6). 1 cup cut carrots

(7). 1 and half cup cut green pepper

(8). 2 medium size onions

(9). 1 cup chopped cilantro

(10). 2-3 teaspoon chili powder

(11). 2 teaspoon turmeric powder

(12). salt to taste

(13). 4 teaspoon Bombay Biryani Masala

(14). 1 teaspoon black pepper powder

(15). 1 teaspoon asafoetida

(16). 4 cloves

(17). 1 small cinnamon stick cut into two

(18). 1 star anise seeds(badiyan)

(19). 2 green cardamom

(20). 8-10 water melon kernels(Magaj Tari seed)

(21). 2 teaspoon ginger paste
(22). 1 bay leave

(23). pinch of saffron

(24). 4 tablespoon milk

(25). 4 table spoon oil

(26). half cup yogurt (non fat or law fat is fine too)

(27). half cup melted butter or ghee

(28). half cup chopped cashew

(29). 1.5 cup croutons 

Recipe:-

Cut potatoes into big pieces. Cut onion length wise. You can use chopped onion too.

In big bowl take potatoes,carrots,green pepper and cauliflower florets add 2 teaspoon biryani masala, turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon chili powder, salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper powder. Mix all well so that vegetables are nicely get coated with spices.

In a cup take milk and add saffron and warm it in microwave for 15-20 seconds.Mix saffron well in milk.

Soak rice in water for 30 minutes. If you are running out of time , you can soak the rice in hot or warm water for 15 minutes. Cook rice in rice cooker by adding pinch of salt, 2 cloves ,1 cardamom, 1 bay leave and one cinnamon stick  remove the plug just before you think it will go to warm mode. This will make sure rice has little moisture it is not too dried.

Start stove and heat 1 table spoon oil and add onions and pinch of salt. Cook onion till they are golden browned. Add cashew and croutons in it and cook for another 2-3 minutes. If needed add add one table spoon of oil.  

Start stove, in same nonstick pan take 3 tablespoon oil. Once oil become warm add asafoetida, 2 cloves, 1 cardamom, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 star anise seed, water melon seed and 1 teaspoon chili powder. Now add coated vegetables with spices and little water. Cover the pan with lid, let it cook on medium flame 7-8 minutes. Take toothpick or fork and insert in potato and see it is soft or not. Once potatoes are cooked add green peas and green beans. Mix all vegetables , let it cook on medium flame for 2-3 minutes. Now add  yogurt and mix it well in vegetables and cook for 3-4 minutes on low flame. Switch of the stove.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees and  oven safe pan,  make first layer of rice, on top of it add 2 teaspoon saffron milk and 2 teaspoon melted butter randomly. Layered the rice with seasoned vegetables. Add some fried onions, cashews, croutons and cilantro on top. Repeat this procedure until you are done with vegetables and your last layer is should be of rice. Add remaining saffron milk and butter. Add remaining onions, cilantro, cashews and croutons on top of rice. Cover the pan with aluminum foil. Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes.

Once done , remove from the oven mix rice ,vegetable and garnishing well and serve it with raita and any Indian pickle. You can also serve with any curry or dal fry.

Vegetable Biryani

Tips:-

• I didn't use garlic paste but if you want you can certainly add 1 teaspoon  with ginger paste. 
• Instead of using oven you can make same layers in slow cooker and cook it slow on medium or low setting for 15-20 minutes. 
• To bring more fun in color throw some sliced beet root while cooking vegetables. Add them before adding peas and green beans. 
• You can also add half cup tomato puree with coated vegetables in cooking to bring more flavor and sour taste.
• If you don't have cauliflower florets handy, you can always replace it with broccoli, add broccoli with peas and green beans not before, to keep its crunchiness.
• You can also use basil leaves to bring aroma to dish. Just use 3-4 leaves on very top layer.
• You can also use food color to make biryani spectacular.