Buttermilk Curry made with Green Sorrel and Chickpea Flour

Our own Indian Kadhi made of buttermilk, besan and khatta palak. I normally don't see this green vegetable often with vendors, this time I got my hands on a few bunches of the Green Sorrel which is Ambat Chuka in Marathi, Khatta Palak in Hindi. Mildly sour, the fresh vegetable lends an amazing taste to the simple Kadhi with a tempering of ghee and jeera. Many times in my childhood I would get to hear in my house, that the menu was going to have Ambat chukyach Kadhi with rice.

Ingredients

1 bunch green sorrel, cleaned and chopped.

2 glasses of buttermilk with 3 tablespoons of besan or chickpea flour mixed well to see that there are no lumps.

Salt to taste

Small spoon of turmeric powder, asefoetida, cumin seeds and 2 tspoons ghee for tempering

Sugar or grated jaggery to taste

1 green chilli and 4 cloves of garlic roughly crushed

Plain water to be added as per the required consistancy

Method

In a deep bottomed vessel take two teaspoons of ghee, heat it a bit add cumin seeds let them splutter, add the garlic chilli mixture stir for a bit, add a pinch of asefoetida and little turmeric powder, add the chopped green sorrel, stir till a little cooked, add the buttermilk chickpea flour mix, keep stirring and adding ater if you think it is too thick. bring it to the required consistancy and then add salt and sugar or jaggery. Bring it to a quick boil and serve hot with steamed rice.

Thecha, something that occupies a corner in my fridge and heart always.

Coming up early morning with a spicy post, the reason being that I got hold of some fresh tamarind flowers which I could use in my recipe .Always mesmerised and happy with the colours and tastes that nature has to offer to us smile emoticon

Easy peasy recipe.
in a pan wash and put the 100  gms of chillies, handful of tamarind flowers and the tender leaves, salt as per taste, a small spoon of asefoetida, 1/4 cup water, 2 tablespoons of refined sunflower oil, 10 fenugreek seeds. mix all well and keep it on the gas, cook coveredand check in between while stirring that the water has not dried up, if so add little bit stir and cover back, cook till the chillies are tender and have change colour, they should retain moisture even after they are cooked. Now blend them to a course paste, your Thecha is ready to be eaten with chapati, bread, curd rice, can be added in the bhel mixture too.

This is a nice tasty drink, like a soup which can be sipped piping hot on winter mornings or chilly evenings too.

  Tomato Saar With Coconut Milk And a hint of Green Chilli

 Ingredients 

1) Ingredients for grinding to a paste
3 big tomatoes
2 green chillies
1/2 cup freshly scraped coconut

2) Ingredients to be added later
1/2 tspoon pepper powder
1 tspoon sugar
Salt to taste

3) For the tempering you need 1 tspoon ghee, 1 tspoon cumin seeds, 1/4 tspoon asafoetida

Method
Grind the step one ingredients to a fine paste, strain well, adding water 2- 3 times, till all the pulp and the coconut milk strains out well. This will give you a thick consistancy, add water making it to a little thicker than soup consistancy. Add step 2 ingredients, bring to a boil and then make a tempering of the step 3 ingredients and pour over the saar. Serve decorated with coriander leaves and a dash of lime which is optional.
This is usually served with a meal and can be sipped through out the meal.

Cabbage Fritters
This would make a nice teatime snack for a chilly winter evening. Learnt it from a regional cookery show and thought of sharing the recipe. Hope you enjoy.
Ingredients
2 cups of chickpea flour
1/2 cup rice flour
2 cups of cabbage chopped into fine juliens
1/2 cup onions chopped to fine juliens
a handful of curry leaves chopped fine
6 green chillies chopped fine
1/2 cup of mint leaves chopped fine
1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves chopped fine
Salt to taste
1/2 tspoon edible soda or 2 tablespoons of heated oil
Method
Mix all the above ingredients adding very little water and mixing it to a fritter consistancy. heat oil in a kadhai, make small portions and fry them on medium flame taking care to see the fritters do not burn from out and at the same time get thoroghly cooked inside also.

Tag

Amti

Amti is a type of sweet and sour curry made of split pigeon pea. A regular dish in most Maharashtrian and North Karnataka homes. Loved by one and all, you can safely call this a comfort dish. Eaten with steaming hot rice and a dash of clarified butter is heavenly!!
I have had the best taste coming from what my grandmom made, next was my mom and then I never got the same taste. this comes in memory of both amazing cooks.
Want to show you the amazing fresh tamarind flowers and leaves in the picture.

ingredients
1) 1 cup split pigeon pea pressure cooked with a pinch of asefoetida, a small spoon of turmeric powder, a small tomato slit.

2) spoons of tamarind pulp, I was fortunate enough to to find fresh tamarind flowers and leaves which I could add while making the pulp
1 tspoon full of saar masala
2 tspoons full of grated jaggery
Salt to taste
Chilli powder to taste.
Oil, muastard seeds, turmeric powder and asefoetida for the tempering.

Method
First once the lentil is pressure cooked, cool it and peel the tomato in it, add all the ingredients from No 2, keep ready.

take a deep bottomed vessel, add oil, mustard seeds, once they splutter add the asefoetida and turmeric powder, add the pressure cooked lentils in which all ingredients from No 2 have been added, make a curry consistency, give it a nice boil, add fresh coriander chopped, serve with plain rice and a dash of clarified butter.