Red Thai Curry

This is a very nice and tasty curry prepared using fresh vegetables,spices and coconut milk when served with either plain rice or any kind of fried rice.It truly tastes heaven and also gives a restaurant feeling but of course healthy as home cooked food is always the best.

Ingredients:
Spring Onion                                2-3nos(chopped)
Baby corn                                      4-5nos(cut into fingers)
Cauliflower/
broccoli florets                            1cup
Carrot(sliced)                               1/2cup(1" fingers)
Oil                                                     4-5 tsp

For paste:
Red chillies
(byadagi variety)                        5nos
Onion(s)                                          1nos
Garlic flakes,peeled                   8 flakes
Ginger,fresh& chopped            1tsp
Black peppercorn                       4-5 nos
Coriander seeds                          2tsp
Cumin seeds                                 1/2tsp
Soy sauce                                      1/2tsp
Lime juice                                     1tsp
Jaggery                                          1/2tsp
Salt                                                 to taste

Other Ingredients:
Fresh grated coconut            1cup(tender variety)
Rice flour                                    1tsp
Basil leaves                               3-4(fresh or dried)
Lemon grass                             3-4 pieces(1" pieces)

Method:

• Boil red chillies with little water,cover and set it aside.
• Blend coconut using about 1-1..5 cup of water in batches and extract milk,to this add rice flour and give a nice whisk.
• In a blending jar take the red chillies(drain the water)and blend coarsely,add all the ingredients mentioned for paste and prepare a smooth paste adding required amount of water.
• Heat a skillet and add the sliced carrot,baby corns drizzling a little water.Cover and cook for2-3minutes,once tender add the cauliflower/broccoli florets and a tsp of oil and saute for 2-3 minutes adding a dash of salt.Cover and cook for another 2 minutes,let stand for few minutes.
• Set the sauteed vegetables on a plate.
• Heat the same skillet used for sauteeing vegetables with 2-3 tsp of oil and saute chopped spring onions for couple of minutes.
• Add the prepared red paste and saute on low flame for 5-7 minutes stirring in between.
• Now add the sauteed veggies,salt to taste,jaggery,coconut milk,basil leaves,lemon grass,add water if the gravy becomes too thick.\
• Cover with a lid and cook on a low flame for 5-7minutes.
• Serve with white or boiled rice or noodles.

Try serving this curry with Vegetable Fried rice from this blog.

Sweet Chutney(with tamarind and dates)

This is a very tasty recipe of sweet chutney that I follow these days which can be served with chaats,dhokla and stuff like that.With a little effort one can prepare this and store in a bottle jar that comes out handy whenever need arises.

Ingredients:
Tamarind                                 1/2cup(deseeded)
Dates                                          8-10(deseeded)
Jaggery                                     1cup
Salt                                              1-1.5tsp

Masala:
Coriander powder                 2tsp
Asafoetida(hing)                    a pinch
Red chilli powder                   2tsp
Garam masala powder        1tsp
Black salt                                   1/2tsp
Roasted cumin powder        2tsp

Method:

• Soak tamarind and dates separately using warm water and set aside for 2-3 hours.
• Take the soaked dates(reserve the drained water)in a blender and prepare a paste.
• Transfer into a soup pot.
• In the same blending jar blend tamarind with little water and extract pulp using a strainer.
• Do this until fibre is visible,needs about 1.5-2 cups of water.
• Add the tamarind extract into the pot containing dates pulp along with jaggery,salt and bring to a nice rolling boil.
• Reduce the flame to low and boil for 15-20 minutes.switch off the flame and let it cool
• In a small seasoning pan roast on low heat coriander powder,asafoetida,red chilli powder carefully without burning the ingredients.
• Switch off the heat and to this mix garam masala,black salt and roasted cumin powder and let it cool.
• when the chutney is completely cooled add the roasted masala and mix well
• Store in a clean dry glass bottle jar .
• Stays good  for couple of months.

 

  

Gongura Chutney/Pachidi-Sorrel Leaves Chutney

Happy New Year 2016 to all my readers.
This is a wonderful chutney recipe of gongura leaves which I learnt from my dear friend Jaysree.She had prepared this using swiss chard instead and told me it is actually prepared using gongura which is naturally sour.Till then I had only tasted store bought 'Priya' pickle.I prepare this whenever I get a big bunch of leaves and this can also be stored in refrigerator for few days.

Ingredients:
Gongura leaves                     2cups
Small onions                          10-15
Salt                                             to taste
Oil                                               1tbsp+1Tbsp
 
Masala Powder:
Mustard seeds                       1/2tsp
Red chillies                             6-7
Jeera/Cumin seeds              1/4tsp
Urad daal                                1.5tsp
Dhania/
coriander seeds                     1tbsp
Hing/asafoetida                   a pinch
 
Method:

• Pluck only the leaves discarding the petioles from the bunch.
• Rinse the leaves well and towel dry and roughly chop.
• Peel and chop the onions.
• Heat a tava and dry roast every single ingredient mentioned under the masala powder carefully one by one without over roasting on a low flame.
• Cool and blend to make a coarse powder.
• Heat a skillet with 1tbsp oil and sauté onions till pale.
• Add the gongura leaves,salt and sauté.The leaves wilt and also the colour changes
• Add little water and cook covering for 3-4 minutes.
• When the leaves cool down a bit pulse in a blending jar just for few seconds.
• Add the prepared masala powder and pulse some more and see that it incorporates well with the leaves,use spatula in between to mix and pulse.The texture should be coarse.
• This is ready to serve .
• Else heat another Tbsp of oil and sauté the prepared paste for 3-5 minutes.
• Tastes best when served with steamed rice mixed with ghee and this chutney

Note:
I have used regular onions that come in smaller size.Any variety can be used.

This is how the leaves look like-

The making of chutney-