Eggplant Curry

Eggplant ia fruit which we use as a vegetable. When buying eggplant, look for heavy, firm fruit with clean dark skin without much marks. The ones with fewer seeds inside are less bitter. They come is different sizes and colour. I have used the large pear shaped eggplants with dark purple-black colour usually available in the super markets.

Ingredients

Eggplant - 1 medium sized

Tomatoes - 2 medium

onion - 1 medium

Ginger - 1 small piece

garlic- 3-4cloves

green chilli- 2

Musturd seeds, cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp each

curry pdr - 1 tsp

salt to taste

ghee/oli - 3 tsp

Method

1. Cut the eggplant length wise(1 inch). Sprinkle salt and put it in a colander. Put a heavy pan over the eggplant and let it sit for 1/2 hr. We can see the water collected at the bottom. discard this water.



2. Cut the onion and tomatoes finelyand keep it aside. Make g3 paste.



3. In a pan add 2 tsp ghee. Add musturd seeds and cumin seeds. When it spluters add the onions and g3 paste. Fry till light brown.



4. Add the eggplant and fry it again. Sprinkle little water.



5. When it is half cooked add the tomatoes, curry pdr and salt to taste and cook it in low flame for 8-10 mnts.



6. Garnish with coriander leaves and pour a tsp ghee over the dish just before serving.

Cauliflower Red Beans Curry

This a very last minute side dish . Cauliflower should be always cooked very carefully since overcooking tends to let out a bad smell. Also the curry tends to be very mushy. So when ever I cook cauliflower I soak in boiling water instead of directly boiling in water and let rest of the cooking in the end. Also the red beans and cauliflower is a good combination.

Ingredients

Cauliflower - 2 cups(florets)

Red beans - 1/2 cup

Onion -1

Tomato - 2 medium

Coriander pdr - 1 tsp

Amchur pdr - 1 tsp

ginger - medium piece

green chillies - 2

salt to taste

Ghee - 2 tsp

Method

Soak the red beans for 4-6 hrs. pressure cook it adding little salt.

Boil water . Add salt and put the floretts . let it sit for 7-8 mnts. Then drain it.

Grind the ginger and green chillies into paste.

In a pan add 2 tsp ghee. Add the cut onions and fry it. Add ggpaste and cauliflower to it. Fry it till a light brown coating appears on the cauliflower. Add the coriander and amchur pdr and tomatoes. Add 1/4 cup water and cook it in medium flame covering it 3/4th for 5-7 mnts. Add salt if necessary.

Garnish it with corianderleaves or parsely.

Happy Vishu 2007! Ada Pradhaman

We celebrated Vishu today. Vishu means EQUAL. It is considered as the Malayalam New Year day. We keep Vishukkani(offering to god) the previous night and on the day of Vishu early morning as soon as we get up we see God first and pray for the prosperity of the year ahead.
Back in India we used to burst crackers and youngsters get Vishu kai neettam from all the elders of the family. This is the time of the year our piggy banks used to get full.
Also the lunch of the day will be like a feast with sweet, salt,sour and bitter items.
This year I made AdaPradhaman for neyvedyam along with other lunch items.



Ingredients

Ada - 1 cup
Milk(whole) - 3 cups
Sweetened condesed milk - 1 small tin
Sugar if necessary
water - 2 cups
Elaichi pdr - 1/2 tsp
Ghee - 1/2 tsp

Method

1. In a well washed vessel add 3 cups whole milk. Put a long spoon in it. Keep it inside a pressure cooker(Clean the cooker also before using since the milk might get spoiled otherwise). Let 3 whistles come. Keep it in low flame and cook the milk for 1/2 hr. Off the heat after 1/2 hr.
2. Meanwhile boil 2 cups water. Add the ada to the boiling water. Off the heat and keep it closed till it becomes soft(20mnts). Drain the ada. Keep till all the water is drained(10 mnts).
3. Take the milk out from the cooker. The milk will have become pink colour.
4. If the vessel is big enough continue in the same vessel or transffer it to a wider vessel with thick bottom.
5. On medium flame start cooking again. Add the ada to the milk. Add the sweetened condensed milk. Let it cook for another 1/2 hr. If the sweetness is less then add sugar to your taste.
6. Stir it with a spoon every now and then . See that it does not stick to the bottom of the vessel.
7. In the end add elaichi pdr and 1/2 tsp ghee to it for nice smell and taste.