Whole Moong Dal Sprouts and Pepper Masala - Andhra Inspired Flavours

I sprouted some Moong this week.. So it is Sprout Mania in the house. I made some amazing Moong Pulao with it the other day, flavoured with mint. Next was the perfect cake! Yes, you heard it right. I made a savoury Moong Sprout and Semolina Cake. That recipe is a keeper.

With the last of the Moong Spouts I made this gravy. I took inspiration from the Mirchi Ka Salan gravy. The spices are all Andhra Inspired. Power Packed Tasty Gravy, perfect for rotis.



Ingredients

Whole Moong Dal (Moong Sprouts) 3 cups
Onions 2
Green Pepper 1
Red Pepper 1
Yellow Pepper 1

Mustard 1/2 tsp
Fenugreek seeds 1/4 tsp
Curry leaves few

Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder 1 tbsp
Kashmiri Chilli powder 2 tsp

Tamarind paste 1 tsp
Coriander leaves to garnish

Oil and Salt to taste

To be ground to dry powder 
Roasted peanuts 2 tbsp
Roasted sesame seeds 2 tbsp
Roasted cumin 1 tbsp

To be ground to a paste
Garlic 6
Ginger 1 inch piece
Tomatoes 2
Coconut 1/4 cup

Method of Preparation

1. Heat a pan. Add the peanuts and roast. When they are almost roasted, add the sesame and cumin. Roast till a nice aroma comes. Powder them. Keep aside.

2. Make a paste of garlic, ginger, tomatoes and coconut. Keep aside.

3. Heat oil in the pan. Add mustard seeds. When it sputters, add fenugreek seeds and curry leaves.

4. When it sizzles, add the onions. Saute till the colour starts to change.

5. Add the ground tomato paste. Saute for a few minutes till the raw smell is gone.

6. Add chopped peppers and saute for a few more minutes.

7. Now add the moong sprouts. Saute for 2 minutes.

8. Add coriander powder, cumin powder, chilli powder, turmeric and the sesame-peanut powder. Mix well and cook for a couple of minutes.

9. Add tamarind paste, salt and 4-5 cups of water. Bring it to a boil.

8. Simmer till the sauce thickens. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve hot with rotis.


I am hosting a Healthy Cooking Event - Cooking with Sprouts. It is Priya's event.

Spinach and Sweet Potato Pulusu

When I think Andhra food, the first thing that comes to my mind is Spicy food. But over the years I have learned a few flavours that I now associate with Andhra food. The taste of powdered Mustard and powdered roasted Sesame seeds bring memories of Andhra food. I am not sure if the recipe below is authentic, I found it in a Tarla dalal book that I have. It tastes really good, once you get used to the taste of powdered mustard :-)

Ingredients

Sweet Pototo 3 big ones
Spinach (I used a 450gm bag)
Tamarind 1.5 tbsp
Turmeric 1/2 tsp
Roasted Sesame Seeds 2 tbsp (Powdered)

To powder
Mustard seeds 1.5 tsp
Rice 4 tsp
Dry Red Chillies 3

For Tempering
Fenugreek seeds 1/4 tsp
Mustard 1/4 tsp
Dry Red Chilli 1
Curry leaf few
Oil a little

Method of Preparation

1. Dry roast the sesame seeds. Powder and keep aside.

2. Powder Mustard, rice and red chilli. Keep aside.

3. Peal and chop sweet potato. Add to a pot. Add a little water. Boil till it is cooked well, but still retains shape. Drain out of the pan.

4. In the same water, add chopped spinach. Add more water in needed.

5. When it wilts, add the powdered mustard mix and cook for a few minutes.

6. Add salt, tamarind, turmeric and the cooked sweet potatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer for a little while till the raw smell of mustard is gone.

7. Finally add the powdered sesame. Mix well  and switch off after a couple of minutes.

8. In a small pan, add a little oil. Add mustard and fenugreek seeds. When mustard sputters, add dry red chilli (broken) and curry leaves. Transfer to the pot of spinach.

Enjoy with some roti or rice.

Check out the other AGC thoughout this week 
Anusha, Jayanthi, Kavitha, Priya M, Radhika, Priya S

Andhra Pappu - Tomato Dal

Dals are a family favourite. My little one will happily eat his roti if I give it to him with some simple dal. 'This is my favourite' he said after finishing his roti with this dal. My husband suggested that I should make dal every day. So much for me exploring and learning new recipes and cooking it for them. All they want is simple dal :-)

Andhra food is one of my favourites. Though not sure how authentic they are, I have fond memories of eating lunch from Andhra Mess while living in Chennai. My favourite at that time was the pappu or dal. Here is my humble effort to recreate it.



Ingredients

Toor Dal 1 cup cooked with 3 cups of water
Mustard 1/2 tsp
Jeera 1 tsp
Turmeric 1/2 tsp
Hing a little
Garlic 6-8 pods
Onion 1 big
Tomato 3 big
Curry leaves a few sprigs
Green Chilli 3
Coriander leaves to garnish

Oil and salt to taste

For tempering

Mustard 1/2 tsp
Jeera 1/2 tsp
Red Chilli 5

Method of Preparation

1. Pressure cook the dal with 3 cups of water till it is well cooked.

2. Heat some oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it sputters, add the jeera and turmeric. Let it sizzle.

3. Add chopped garlic and saute till it starts to brown.

4. Add the chopped onions and saute till it changes colour.

5. Add curry leaves and green chill. Saute for another minute.

6. Add chopped tomatoes, turmeric, hing and salt. Mix well. Let it cook.

7. Once cooked, add the cooked dal and some water as required. Bring it to a boil and simmer.

8. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with roti or rice.

Sambar - Vah re Vah Style

Sambar is a must have in any south indian meal. Every state and to some extent every house has their own variation of Sambar.

Check out other versions of Sambar posted in my blog

1. Ezhukari/Thaalakam
2. Sambar for Tiffin
3. Sambar Version 1
4. Kerala Style Vegetable Sambar

I found a version of Sambar by Vah Chef Sanjay Thumma. Most of you don't need an introduction to him. He has this super addictive personality and true to his word, Vah re vah is all about inspiring others to cook. Just looking at his show will make you want to run to the kitchen and try it immediately. This Sambar is no exception. It tasted awesome. It is quire similar to the arachu vitta sambar made in our homes. But a couple of things that I found different was the use of garam masala and ginger/garlic. Never heard of anyone using it, we quite liked this.

His sambar was very watery for my taste. So I made it slightly thicker.



At the end of this video, he tells how Sambar and rice taste best when eaten with hand and not with cutlery. So true. Our son now taken a crazy liking to eat his rasam rice with hands. Well what a mess he makes. But we love watching him eat. (He is this guy who needs to wipe his face between every mouthfuls even when he eats with his spoon. So this is saying something)

The spice level in this is slightly higher than my usual ones. Still not too spicy. Just a warning



Ingredients (Makes a big pot. Can easily serve 4-5 adults)

Do not be over whelmed by the number of ingredients. I have tried to group them in sets of how they go into the pot.

For Sambar Masala 

Set 1
Coriander Seeds 2 tbsp
Cumin 1 tbsp
Red Chilli 4
Pepper 1 tsp
Rice 1 tbsp
Channa Dal 2 tbsp
Fenugreek Seeds (Mendayam) 1/2 tsp
Clove 2
Cinnamon 1 inch piece
Star Anise 1
Fennel Seeds 1 tsp

Set 2
Mustard 1 tsp
Ginger 1 inch piece
Garlic 5 pods
Coconut 1 cup
Curry leaves few
Turmeric 1/2 tsp
Hing a little
Tomato 1

Other Ingredients
Onions 2
Potato 1
Carrots 2
Okra/Vendakka 4
Beans 3-4
Peas 1/2 cup
Tomato 3

Puli 1 tsp
Toor Dal 1/2 cup
Mustard 1 tsp
Cumin 1/2 tsp
Green Chilli 2
Curry leaves few

Coriander leaves a handful

Oil and salt to taste



Method of Preparation

1. Pressure cook the dal with enough water till it is well mushed. Keep ready.

2. The next step is to prepare sambar masala. We are not using ready made sambar powder at all. In a pot, dry roast the following ingredients together till they are slightly browned. Coriander Seeds, Cumin, Red Chilli, Pepper, Rice, Channa Dal, Fenugreek Seeds (Mendayam), Clove, Cinnamon, Star Anise, Fennel Seeds. Transfer to a mixie

3. In the same pot, add a little oil. Add mustard. When it sputters, add the Ginger and Garlic. Saute for a minute. Add the Coconut, Curry leaves, Turmeric, Hing and Tomato. Stir for a minute or 2 and then transfer to the mixie.

4. Grind to a smooth paste by adding a little water. Keep aside.

5. In the same pot, add some more oil. Add the Mustard. When it sputters, add the Cumin, Green Chilli and Curry leaves.

6. When it sizzles, add onions (chopped into 1 cm squares), cubed potato, cut carrots, sliced beans and peas along with some salt. Stir well and let it cook for a couple of minutes. Add tomatoes and saute for another minute

7. Add tamarind paste and a cup of water (or tamarind water). Simmer for a little bit till the vegetables start to cook.

8. Add the sambar masala and mix well. Add more water as required (3 cups or so). Do not make it too watery. Keep it thick. I felt that the Vah chef made it a bit too watery.

9. Simmer for a little while till everything comes together.

10. Add the mashed dal and cook for a few more minutes. You can adjust water again. 

11. Switch off and garnish with some coriander leaves.

Serve with rice and some papads or some dry side dish.

Inchi Thogayal - Ginger Chutney

My bloghop partner this month is Nagashree of Sattvaa. After browsing thru the amazing array of recipes in her blog I picked Allum Pachadi. Paired it with Pesarattu. Don't forget to check my Pesarattu recipe.



I made little changes to the recipe to suit our needs.

Remember that this is fairly spicy and not for the faint of heart. I could not serve it for my little one who is usually ok with most chutneys and thogayals that I make. You can skip the red chillies all together if you want a milder version.

I have to say, as of the day I made this, it is my Favourite thogayal.

Ingredients

Ginger 1 cup chopped
Urad Dal 1/4 cup
Tamarind paste 1 tsp
Mustard 1 tsp
Methi seeds 1/2 tsp
Hing a little
Jaggery 2 tbsp
Red Chilli 4

Oil and salt to taste

Method of Preparation

1. Heat a little oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it sputters, add the whole pealed urad dal.  When it starts to brown, add the methi seeds and red chilli.  Roast till it is all slightly browned. Transfer to a mixie

2. In the same pan, add the chopped ginger and cook for a few minutes. Add to mixie

3. Add a little water to the pan (2-3 tbsp) and powdered jaggery. Melt it. Add to mixie.

4. Add tamarind paste, salt and hing to the mixie.

5. Grind to a paste.

Enjoy with dosa or idli. You can mix with rice as well. I even had the left over as a sandwich spread.





Linking this to Blog Hop Wednesday - Recipe by Nagashree of Sattvaa. Check other bloghoppers here

Pesarattu

Blogging does have its advantages. Instead of making the same old tiffin item, I decided to make something different. That thought led me to Pesarattu. I had made this a long time ago and decided to give it a go again.

I am looking for opinion of my readers as to what ratio they use. I know moong dal is the main ingredient. But the question is do you use some rice as well.

Since it was a Andra Speciality Dosa, I wanted to combine it with something that was also Andra speciality. So ruled out the tomato-onion chutney. I was reminded of peanut chutney that I have tasted from a colleague and decided to make it. Check out the recipe for Peanut Chutney as well.

This recipe will serve 4 adults

Ingredients

Green Moong dal 2.5 cups

Idli Rice 1/2 cup

onion 1 small cut into small pieces

Red chillies 6

Green chillies 2

curry leaves few

ginger 1 inch bit

hing

Oil and Salt to taste

Method of Preparation

1. Soak the rice and moong together overnight

2. Drain and Grind into a course paste along with green chillies, red chillies, ginger and curry leaves adding enough water.

3. Mix with onion, hing and salt. The batter should be fairly thicker than usual dosa batter. But loose enough to spread. Adjust water as needed.

4. Heat a tawa and spread the batter. Pour some oil on the dosa.

5. When one side is cooked well and the dosa starts to brown, turn and cook on the other side

6. Serve with a side of your choice.

Linking this to MLLA 42 (Susan's My Legume Love Affair Event), this month hosted by Kiran of Sumadhura

Peanut Chutney

Peanut Chutney makes an excellent combination for dosas and idlis, especially Pesarattu. Do check the recipes under the label Tiffin for different dosas and idlis.

Ingredients

Onion 1 Big, cut into big chunks

Peanut (groundnut) 1 cup - roasted. If you do not have roasted peanuts, just dry roast them in a tawa.

Green Chillies 2

Red Chillies 2

Ginger small piece

Oil and Salt to taste

Tempering

Mustard Seeds 1/2 tsp

Curry Leaves few

Method of Preparation

1. Heat oil in a pan and add the add the onions.

2. when the onion becomes translucent, add the chillies and ginger

4. saute for a little bit more.

5. cool and then grind to a fine paste with peanuts and salt.

6. Temper with mustard and curry leaves. Enjoy this simple Chutney!

Linking this to MLLA 42 (Susan's My Legume Love Affair Event), this month hosted by Kiran of Sumadhura