Potlakaya kobbari kura|Snake gourd with coconut

This is a simple, quick to make curry. It can be paired with rotis or rice and pappu/dal.

Ingredients

2 cups snake gourd, sliced

2 tbsp grated fresh coconut

1/2 tbsp ghee

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

1/2 tsp chana dal

2 dry red chillies, broken in half

2 green chillies, slit lengthwise

8-10 curry leaves

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Add snake gourd to a pan, add sufficient water to cover the slices. Cover and boil until tender. Drain and set aside.

2. Heat ghee in a pan. Add mustard seeds and once they splutter, add urad and chana dals. When they turn light brown, add red chillies, green chillies and curry leaves.

3. Add snake gourd, coconut, salt and turmeric. Mix well, saute for a minute. Transfer to a serving bowl.

Knol khol pesarapappu kura|Kohlrabi and moong dal curry

Mum’s having a bumper crop of knol khol and is naturally distributing to family and friends! I used my share to make two dishes; one a Kashmiri recipe inspired and two, this very simple curry with moong dal.

Ingredients

1 cup finely chopped knol khol

1/4 cup pesarapappu/moong dal

2 tsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp chana dal

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

2-3 dry red chillies, broken in half

2 green chillies, slit lengthwise

8-10 curry leaves

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Add the knol khol and dal to a pan; add enough water to cover and boil until the moong dal splits between your fingers, but is still firm and knol khol is tender. Drain and set aside.

2. Heat oil in the same pan (once dry). Add mustard and once it splutters, add chana dal. When the dal starts turning golden, add red chillies, green chillies and curry leaves.

3. Add the knol khol and dal along with turmeric and salt. Mix well. Saute for a couple of minutes and take off heat.

Serve with rice or rotis.

Cabbage pulusu pettina kura| Cabbage curry with tamarind

Cabbage, according to me, is a fairly bland vegetable. And I like that when I want a simple, light side. However, this one with a little tamarind, has a lovely flavour and is a quick, easy fix.

Ingredients

2 cups finely shredded cabbage

2 green chillies, slit lengthwise

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

Salt, to taste

1 tbsp tamarind paste or thick pulp

1 tsp red chilli powder

2 tsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

1/2 tsp chana dal

2-3 dry red chillies, broken in half

8-10 curry leaves

Instructions

1. Add enough water to cover the cabbage in a pan, add salt and turmeric. Cover and boil until cabbage is tender. Drain and keep aside.

2. Heat oil in the same pan (once dry). Add mustard and once they splutter, add the dals and red chillies.

3. Then add the green chillies and curry leaves followed by tamarind and red chilli powder. Saute for a minute.

4. Add the cabbage and mix well. Let it cook for 3-4 minutes and then take off heat.

Serve with rice or rotis.

Raw banana and coconut milk curry

I wanted to make something different from what I usually do with raw banana (aratikaya). Coconut milk was an easy choice because I had it ready and was planning some matta rice…I thought it would be a good pairing. Turned out quite yum I must say.

The coconut milk can be store bought or extracted at home, as preferred. Thick coconut milk is what has been used for this recipe. I go both ways depending on time and mood:)

Ingredients

1 cup raw banana, peeled and chopped into 2 inch thin slices

2 tbsp coconut oil

6-8 dry red chillies

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Tamarind, marble sized

1/4 tsp jaggery powder

1 cup water

200ml thick coconut milk

8-10 curry leaves

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Heat a tbsp coconut oil, add 1/4 tsp turmeric powder and fry the raw banana until golden. Saute intermittently. Keep aside.

2. Grind together red chillies, turmeric, tamarind, jaggery to a coarse powder. Then add 1/4 cup water and grind to a smooth paste.

3. In the same pan, heat a tbsp coconut oil and add mustard. Once they splutter, add red chilli paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add curry leaves and 1/4 cup water and fry until water has evaporated.

4. Add coconut milk and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add salt.

5. Add raw banana, 1/2 cup water and simmer for about 8-10 minutes. Do keep in mind that the gravy will thicken as it rests.

Serve hot with rice.

Goruchikkudikaya kobbari kura| Cluster beans and coconut curry

Simple, quick and tasty.

Ingredients

200g cluster beans, chopped

2 tsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

1/2 tsp chana dal

1/4 tsp turmeric

4 tbsp grated fresh coconut

3-4 dry red chillies

8-10 curry leaves

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Wash, string and chop the cluster beans. I prefer them finely chopped, but upto an inch long is fine. Steam them in a pressure cooker or pan until tender. Drain and set aside.

2. Heat oil in a pan, add mustard and once it splutters, add urad dal, chana dal, dry red chillies.

3. Once the dals are golden, add two tbsp coconut, curry leaves and turmeric. Saute for a minute.

4. Add cluster beans, remaining coconut and salt. Mix. Saute for 2-3 minutes and take off heat.

Serve hot with rice or rotis.

Chikkudikaya kobbari kura|Broad beans with fresh coconut

Winter is the season for the broad beans and there are numerous ways to incorporate this delicious vegetable into our meals. Here’s a quick simple recipe for a curry.

Ingredients

250g broad beans

2 tbsp grated fresh coconut

2 tsp gram flour/besan

1 tsp red chilli powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

1/2 tsp chana dal

A pinch hing/asafoetida (optional)

3 dry red chillies (Byadige variety)

8-10 curry leaves

1 tbsp oil

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Wash, pat dry and string the broad beans. Chop into 2 inch pieces.

2. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard. Once it splutters, add urad dal, chana dal, hing, and red chillies.

3. Once the dals turn a light brown, add curry leaves. Then add the broad beans, salt and a tbsp water. Cover and cook until beans are tender (~10 minutes). Saute intermittently and sprinkle water if required. Else, it could start burning.

4. Once the broad beans are tender, add gram flour, coconut, turmeric powder and red chilli powder. Mix, let it cook (uncovered) for a couple of minutes and then transfer to a serving bowl.

Aloo Methi|Potato and Fenugreek leaves curry

An absolutely delightful combination this one! Mildly spiced, this simple stir fry pairs well with rotis.

I have made this with baby potatoes as well as with the regular ones….both work beautifully.

Ingredients

4 medium sized potatoes, peeled and cubed

4 cups methi leaves, chopped

2-3 green chillies, chopped fine

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

2 tbsp oil or ghee

A pinch hing/asafoetida

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Heat oil/ghee in a pan. Add cumin and after a few seconds, add the hing and chillies.

2. Add chopped potato, turmeric and salt. Sprinkle water, cover and cook until the potatoes start softening. Do saute intermittently and sprinkle more water if required. Let it fry uncovered until the potatoes are golden.

3. Add methi leaves, mix and cook for 5-6 minutes or until all the moisture dries out.

Serve with rotis, phulkas or parathas and a dal. A simple jeera rice also works well.

Brinjal fry, inspired by the begun bhaja

My husband loves brinjal and one of his favourite dishes is the begun bhaja. It’s simple, quick and a perfect accompaniment with a rice and dal (lentils). I had a stock of the Andhra nupindi (sesame-red chilli powder) and decided to spice up the brinjal with it. The ‘nupindi’ recipe is available separately on the blog, but added here for a quick reference.

Ingredients

1 large brinjal, cut into 1/2 inch round slices

1/2 cup nupindi

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Salt, to taste

Mustard oil, for paste and for frying

Ingredients for nupindi:

4 tbsp sesame seeds
4 dry red chillies: Byadige variety
1 dry red chilli: Guntur variety

Instructions

1. Rinse brinjal and pat dry. Cut into half inch round slices (I cut them slightly thinner sometimes so they crisp up a bit).

2. Sprinkle salt and turmeric on the brinjal slices, cover and rest for 15 minutes.

3. In the meantime, make the nupindi. Combine together sesame seeds and dry red chillies and grind to a coarse powder. This can be stored for a few months in an airtight jar.

4. Take 1/2 cup nupindi in a small bowl, add mustard oil to make a thick paste. Apply on each brinjal slice on both sides and let sit for about 5 minutes.

5. Heat mustard oil in a pan (~3-4 tbsp), and fry the brinjal slices until golden brown on both sides. Transfer onto a serving plate.

This can be served with rice or rotis or even just with a dip of choice (yoghurt would pair beautifully).

Note:

You can also coat the slices with rice flour and then pan fry them. I usually pan fry without rice flour.

Bangaladumpa avarekai kura|Potato hyacinth beans curry

A little stash of hyacinth beans went into a curry with my favourite vegetable, potato. It’s a delicious combination and I even used some leftover curry from the dinner for poha in the next day’s breakfast!

Ingredients

2 medium sized potatoes, peeled & chopped into one inch size pieces

1/2 cup hyacinth beans

1 tbsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander powder

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp red chilli powder

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

1-2 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves

Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Add the hyacinth beans to a pan, add enough water to cover and cook until done. This will take approximately ten minutes.

2. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Crackle mustard, add cumin and saute. Add the potato, turmeric powder, salt and 1-2 tbsp water. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender, yet firm. Check intermittently and sprinkle water if required.

3. Once done, add coriander powder, cumin powder, red chilli powder, hyacinth beans, coriander leaves and mix. Fry for about 3-4 minutes and transfer to a serving bowl.

Notes

1. You can substitute the red chilli with 2 finely chopped green chillies

2. You can add a tsp of ghee just before taking off the heat.

Chikkudikaya avarekai kura|Broad beans and Hyacinth beans curry

Mum gave me some fresh broad beans from the garden and a dear friend brought me some hyacinth beans. I love both immensely! Decided on a quick and simple curry to go with rice.

Ingredients

1.5 cups broad beans, broken in half

1/4 to 1/2 cup hyacinth beans

1 tbsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/2 tsp urad dal

1/2 tsp chana dal

A pinch hing/asafoetida

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

2-3 dry red chillies

1 tbsp karivepaku podi (recipe available in separate post)

Salt, to taste

1/2 tsp ghee (optional)

Instructions

1. Add enough water to cover the hyacinth beans in a pan; cover and cook until tender. This hardly takes a few minutes and can even be done along with the broad beans.( I did the step separately because the broad beans are tender and would cook in a few seconds.) Drain and set aside.

2. Heat oil, crackle mustard seeds. Add the dals, hing and red chillies. Then, add the broad beans, turmeric and salt. Sprinkle some water, cover and cook until broad beans are tender. Check intermittently, saute and sprinkle more water if required.

3. Once the broad beans have cooked, add the hyacinth beans. Saute for a minute and add the karivepaku podi and 1/2 tsp ghee (if using). Mix. Let it fry for another couple of minutes and then transfer to a serving bowl.

Notes

1. I added one green brinjal as well to the above. This can be added along with the broad beans during cooking.

2. If you don’t have the karivepaku podi, just add a tsp of red chilli powder instead.