Dum Aloo with Avocado

Hi all, the recipe I made was out of compulsion of using small potatoes and avocado before its too late to be used. What better way than to make Dum Aloo which basically means slow cooked potatoes. It generally uses yogurt but instead of yogurt I used Avocado to get the creamy texture and to balance the gravy. So, here it goes

DUM ALOO WITH AVOCADO

INGREDIENTS

Small Potatoes: 10-12 peeled

Avocado: 2 medium scooped from inside

Onion: 1 Medium chopped

Tomato: 1 medium

Garlic: 2 Pods chopped

Ginger: 1 Tsp Chopped

Cashews: 10-12 soaked in water for 10 mins

Green Chilli: 1

Cinnamon Stick: 1 Medium

Bay Leaf: 1

Black Pepper corn:4-5

Coriander Seeds: 1 Tsp

Jeera: 1 Tsp

Fennel Seeds: 1 Tsp

Red Chilli Powder: 1 Tsp

Turmeric Powder: 1/4th Tsp

Jeera-Dhania Powder: 1 Tsp

Kasoori Methi: 1-2 Tsp crushed

Garam Masala: 1/2 Tsp

Salt as required

Oil and Butter: 1-2 Tbsp

Water for grinding and gravy

Coriander leaves for garnish

                                            

Dum Aloo with Avocado

MAKING

Peel the potatoes, poke holes them with a fork and drop them in boiling water and boil them until soft but intact. Drain the water and set the potatoes aside. 

In a shallow pan, add oil. Once hot, add the bay leaf, cinnamon stick, pepper corn, jeera, fennel seeds, green chilli, chopped ginger and garlic and saute them.To this, add the chopped onion, tomato and cashews. Saute them well until the onions turn golden brown and the tomatoes turn soft and cooked. Take out the cinnamon stick and bay leaf. Take the sauteed onion mix out and place them in a bowl and allow it to cool.

In the same pan, add oil. Once heated, add in the boiled small potatoes and shallow fry until the outer layer turns golden brown. Take them out and set aside.

In a blender, add the spice onion mix into a nice paste using little water. In the same pan, add butter, once melted add in the gravy and cook in low flame for a couple of minutes. Add water as required if the paste is too thick.To this, add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, jeera-dhania powder and cook for another couple of minutes in low flame. 

Add the shallow fried potatoes. Mix them well, add water and salt and cook until the potatoes are well mixed with the gravy. Now add the crushed Kasoori Methi and Garam Masala and mix well. After a couple of minutes, finally add in the mashed avocado pulp into the gravy and mix well. 

Thats it, switch off the gas. Garnish the Dum Aloo with freshly chopped Coriander leaves. Serve it hot with Rotis or Naan.

TIPS/VARIATIONS

Make sure to add the avocado right at the end. Doing this retains the nutrients of the avocado.

If you dont have Avocado, you can add yogurt or milk but this needs to be added before adding the kasoori methi and Garam masala and allow it to cook for a few minutes.

Molagushiyam ( Black Pepper Veg Stew)

Hi all, so we were getting a snowstorm and my son was having cough so my husband said we can make a dish called "Molagushiyam". Luckily, I was in a call with my mother and she gave me the recipe. Although,I did not have one of the main vegetable its made with, I used an alternative. It was perfect for a cold day and a big hit with the family. Molagushiyam is generally a comforting lentil based stew using black pepper instead of chillies. Its considered a healthy immune boosting dish.So, here it goes

MOLAGUSHIYAM

INGREDIENTS

Raw small green banana: 1/4th Cup (peel the skin and dice into small cubes)

Potato: 1/4th Cup ( dice into small cubes)

Moong Dal: 3-4 Tbsp

Black Pepper: 2 Tbsp (use a mortar to crush it into a coarse powder)

Cumin seeds: 1-2 Tsp (use a mortar to crush it into a coarse powder)

Turmeric: 1/4th Tsp

Curry leaves: 10-12

Coconut Oil : 1-2 Tsp for Tadka

Red Chillies: 1 medium split into half

Urad Dal: 1 Tsp

Mustard Seeds: 1/2 Tsp

Salt and water as required

                                            

Molagushiyam

MAKING

In a deep bottom pan, add the cut vegetables, moong dal, turmeric, salt as required ,1-2 Tsp of the crushed pepper and curry leaves( 5-6). Add some water and cook until the moong dal is cooked and the vegetables are soft and well mixed into the dal. Add water little by little as and when you think the dal needs to be cooked more.

Now for Tadka, add coconut oil. Once heated, add the Mustard seeds, Urad dal,dry red chilli, remaining crushed black pepper, crushed Jeera and curry leaves. Once the mustard seeds splutters, add it to the gravy and delicious Molagushiyam is ready. 

Serve it hot with rice with papad on the side. 

TIPS/VARIATIONS

Molagushiyam is traditionally made with yam and small green raw banana but I used potato instead of Yam and it came out really well.

You can also add a portion of the crushed jeera/cumin to the gravy with the dal and veggies.

I used a generous amount of black pepper for the heat but you could adjust it based on your heat preference.

Palak Lasooni ( Spinach Garlic Gravy)

Hi all, its the holiday season and my part of the world gets cold during this season. We had some light snow so then what happens when you have a handful of ingredients and need to make a side for Rotis. You come up with this recipe which was a big hit with the family. It was very easy to make and the best part, very healthy because of the ingredients. Perfect dish to make for kids. Here it goes

PALAK LASOONI (SPINACH GARLIC GRAVY)

INGREDIENTS

GRAVY

Spinach : 1 Cup (Blanched in water for 2 minutes and drop it in ice water to retain color)

Garlic : 1 Pod

Onion: 1 Medium finely chopped

Ginger: 1 small piece

Green Chillies: 1-2

Bay Leaf: 1

Cinnamon Stick: 2 medium pieces

Cardamom Pods: 1

Fenugreek leaves/Kasoori Methi: 1 Tsp

Jeera : 1 Tsp

Heavy Cream: 2 Tbsp

Cashews: 8-10

Turmeric Powder: 1/4 Tsp

Cumin-Coriander Powder: 1 Tsp

Garam Masala: 1 Tsp

Salt as required

Unsalted butter: 2 Tbsp

TADKA

Red Chillies: 2 

Kasoori Methi: 1 Tsp

Garlic Pods: 2-3 cut into halves

                                            

Palak Lasooni

MAKING

Grind the blanched spinach with garlic, ginger and green chillies into a nice paste and set aside. In a pan, add butter, once clarified add Jeera, Bay leaf, Cinnamon sticks, Kasoori Methi leaves and cardamon pod and saute for a minute or two. Now add the chopped onion and saute until it turns golden brown. To this, add the spinach paste and allow it to cook for a couple of minutes before adding in the spices ( Turmeric, Cumin-coriander, Garam masala and salt). Cook for a few minutes until the gravy starts thickening.

Grind Cashews and the heavy cream to a nice semi liquid paste. 

Add this to the spinach gravy and cook in low flame for a couple of minutes in low.

Switch off the gas. For tadka, melt butter. Once clarified add the garlic pods, red chillies and Kasoori methi leaves. Once the garlic pods are fried and golden add the tadka to the gravy.

Delicious Palak Lasooni is ready. Serve it hot with rotis or Naans or Paratha's or eat it mixed with plain white rice.

TIPS/VARIATIONS

I took out the Bay leaves, cardamom pod and cinnamon stick after saute so it doesn't stick in your mouth when eating. Some esp kids dont prefer that.

Grinding cashews in heavy cream gives it a creamy texture and also healthy for kids who dont prefer to eat cashews otherwise.

You can also add lemon to the gravy but I did not use it.

Cauliflower Masala Gravy ( No Onion No Garlic)

Hi all, this is another recipe which I tried during the festival of Navaratri and it came out so well that no one would have believed there was no onion or garlic use in this. It was creamy, tasty and just delicious. So, here it goes

CAULIFLOWER MASALA GRAVY

Cauliflower Masala Gravy

INGREDIENTS

Cauliflower Florets : 1 to 1 and 1/2 Cups

Tomato: 1 Medium

Ginger: 1 Tbsp Chopped

Green Chilli 1

Bay Leaf: 1 Medium

Cloves: 3-4

Sesame Seeds: 1 Tbsp

Cashews: 1 Tbsp soaked in water for 10 minutes

SPICES

Turmeric: 1/2 Tsp

Red Chilli Powder: 1 Tsp

Jeera-Dhania Powder: 1 Tsp

Garam Masala: 1 Tsp

Salt as required

Oil and Butter 1 Tbsp each.

Freshly chopped Cilantro/Coriander

Kasoori methi crushed 1 Tsp

MAKING

In a kadai pan, add 1/2 Tsp Butter. Once melted and clarified, add in the Bay leaf, Cloves, Sesame Seeds, 1 Green Chilli, Chopped Ginger and Cashews. Saute them well until it changes color. remove them and keep aside. In the same kadai, add butter and oil. Once heated, add the cauliflower florets and saute until the edges becomes light brown. Remove the florets and set aside.

In a blender, add the set aside sauteed cashew mix, add the roughly chopped tomato and blend them into a nice paste with a little water and set aside.

Take the same kadai, add butter and oil. Once hot, add in the cashew tomato pasted and cook for a couple of minutes in low flame. Now add in the cauliflower florets and cook again for 3-4 minutes. You can add water if it gets too dry.

To this add the Turmeric, Red chilli powder, Jeera-Dhania powder. Add required salt and enough water(1/4th or 1/2 cup) to cook for another 3-4 minutes in medium flame until the gravy thickens. 

Finally add some crushed Kasoori Methi and Garam Masala. Cook for another minute before garnishing it with freshly chopped Coriander leaves (Cilantro)

Delicious Cauliflower Masala Gravy is ready. Serve it hot with Chapathi's Parathas or Naans. You could also eat it with plain rice

TIPS/VARIATIONS

Remove the Bay leaf and cloves after sauteeing them and before grinding them in the blender.

I used a mix of Unsalted butter and oil to give the gravy added flavor

The use of Sesame Seeds gave an added flavor to the gravy