Spicy Cabbage Curry

As this blog does require recipes that I record of my mother’s cooking or sent in by others and I also wish to be a bit more active on my other blogs, I will be making weekly or bi-weekly posts rather than daily posts as I did in the first few months of this blog.

This weekend’s recipe is that of my mother’s spicy cabbage curry. If you prefer fried cabbage, try out the delicious cabbage fry or the cabbage and carrot fry recipes posted earlier on this blog.

Spicy Cabbage Curry

Time taken: 25 mins

Serves 3

Ingredients:

Cabbage – 1 ½ cup, shredded
Carrot – 1 tbsp, finely chopped (optional)
Capsicum/ Malu miris – 1 tbsp, chopped
Green chilli – 1, chopped
Onion – 2 tbsp, chopped
Fenugreek – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Garlic – 1 or 2, finely chopped
Coconut milk – ½ cup
Curry powder – 1 tsp
Salt, to taste
Lime juice – 1 tsp
Oil – 1 tbsp

Method:

Heat a tbsp oil in a pan and fry the chopped onion, garlic, capsicum, chilli, curry leaves and fenugreek seeds for a couple of mins.
Then, add the shredded cabbage and optional carrot to the pan and continue stir-frying for around 5 mins.
Add the coconut milk, curry powder and salt, to taste and let the curry cook for around 10 mins.
Remove the pan from the stove and mix 1 tsp lime juice into the pan.
Serve warm with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Jackfruit Cutlets

Today’s recipe is that of a cutlet my mother made recently. She likes experimenting with her cutlet mixtures and this time, she tried jackfruit and the result was delicious.

Jackfruit Cutlets

Time taken: 40 mins

Makes 4

Ingredients:

Raw, unripe jackfruit – 4 or 5 pieces
Onion – 1 tbsp, finely chopped
Chillies – ½ tsp, finely chopped
Pepper – 1 tsp
Fennel seeds – ½ tsp
Ginger – ½ “, finely chopped
Garlic – 2 cloves, finely chopped
Multi-purpose flour, for light batter
Bread crumbs, for rolling the cutlets
Low fat oil, for deep-frying

Method:

Boil the jackfruit with salt for about 15 to 20 mins.
Chop it and then coarsely grind it to get about ½ cup of the ground, cooked jackfruit. Transfer to a mixing bowl.
Add the finely chopped onion, garlic, ginger, chillies as well as the pepper and fennel seeds to the mixing bowl. Mix well. Divide the seasoned jackfruit mixture into four balls.
Make a light batter by mixing ½ cup of water with some multi-purpose flour.
Dip the cutlet balls in the batter and then roll in the breadcrumbs, before deep-frying till the cutlets are golden brown.
Serve hot with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Potato curry – the drier version

Today’s recipe is that of a simple potato curry that is easy and quick to prepare when you are not in the mood for preparing something elaborate. What’s more, you are sure to like the results. For those who do not like their curries dry, check out the other potato curry recipe.

Potato curry – the drier version.

Time taken: 30 mins

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Potatoes – 2, large
Onions – 2, large
Curry powder – 1 or 2 tsp
Salt, as required
Low fat oil – 3 tbsp

Method:

Boil the potatoes. After the potatoes are boiled, peel and chop them into smaller pieces. Mix in the curry powder and some salt and keep aside.
Clean and chop the onions. Sprinkle with salt.
Heat 3 tbsp oil in a pan and fry the chopped onion for about 5 to 10 mins.
Once the onions starts changing colour and the aroma wafts about, add the seasoned, boiled potatoes to the pan and mix well. Cook for another 5 mins.
Serve warm with roti or pittu.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Dhal with Snake gourd

Today’s recipe is another snake gourd curry that my mother occasionally makes.

Dhal with Snake gourd

Time taken: 30 mins

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Mysore dhal – ½ cup
Pudalangai/ Snake gourd – ½ cup, chopped
Green chillies – 2
Onion – ½
Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Rampe leaf/ pandan – 1 or 2 inch
Coconut milk – ¼ cup (optional)
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Crushed chillies – 1 tsp
Pepper – ½ tsp
Salt, to taste
Low fat oil – 2 tbsp

Method:

Clean the snake gourd and finely chop it.
Heat the oil in a pan and fry the chopped onion, green chillies, fennel seeds for a minute before adding the finely chopped snake gourd, curry leaves and rampe leaf. Cook for about 5 mins over low heat.
Rinse the dhal and add the dhal to the pan. Stir and add a cup of water and let the dhal and snake gourd cook.
Once the water has almost dried up and the vegetables have been cooked, add coconut milk. If you do not wish to use coconut milk due to cholesterol issues, simply add a ¼ cup of water or any alternative non-dairy milk of preference instead.
Add the turmeric powder, crushed chillies, pepper and salt to taste to the pan. Mix well and cook for about 5 mins.
Serve warm with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Fried Snake Gourd

I have always been quite fond of pudalangai/ snake gourd (scientific name: trichosanthes cucumerina). While it is cooked in different ways, my favourite is pudalangai kulambu – the recipe of which I will share when my mother cooks it. In the meantime, here is my mother’s recipe for fried snake gourd.

Pudalangai Varai/ Fried Snake gourd

Time taken: 20 mins

Serves 3

Ingredients:

Pudalangai/ Snake gourd – ½ cup, chopped
Red chillies – 1 or 2
Onion – ½
Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Crushed garlic – 1 tsp
Coconut – 2 tbsp, freshly scraped
Turmeric – ¼ tsp
Salt and pepper, to taste
Low fat oil – 1 tbsp

Method:

Clean the snake gourd and chop it up finely. Mix some salt and keep aside.
Heat a tbsp oil in a pan and fry the chopped red chillies, onion, fennel seeds and curry leaves for 2 mins.
Add the finely chopped and salted snake gourd to the pan and continue stir-frying for 5 mins.
Add 1 cup of water and season with salt to the pan. Cover and let the snake gourd cook till the water dries up.
Remove the cover and add the crushed garlic, freshly scraped coconut and turmeric powder. Season with salt and pepper, as per your taste. Mix well and let it cook for 2 mins.
Serve hot with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Carrot Varai

Carrot Varai

Time taken: 15 – 20 mins

Serves 3

Ingredients:

Carrot – ½ cup, grated
Onion – ½, sliced
Malu miris/ capsicum – 1
Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Pepper – 1 tsp
Salt – ¼ tsp
Low fat oil – 1 tbsp

Method:

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and fry the sliced malu miris and onion. Add the fennel seeds and curry leaves.
After a min or two, add the grated carrots to the pan and stir fry for about 5 mins.
Season with salt and pepper. Mix well and cook for another 5 to 10 mins.
Serve with rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Butternut squash and Dhal curry

Today’s recipe is that of one of my mother’s curries.

Butternut squash and Dhal Curry

Time taken: 40 mins

Serves 4 to 5

Ingredients:

Butternut squash – ½ cup
Mysore dhal – ¼ cup
Tomato – 1
Onion – ½
Capsicum – 1
Cumin powder – 1 tsp
Pepper powder – ½ tsp
Chilli powder – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 1 sprig
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Low fat oil – 2 tbsp

Method:

Boil the mysore dhal and chopped butternut squash, adding one cup of water to a saucepan, over medium heat. Cook till the water dries up.
Heat oil in a pan and fry the chopped onion and capsicum, adding the cumin powder, pepper, chilli powder and curry leaves.
After a couple of mins, add the chopped tomato to the pan and ¼ cup of water.
Transfer the cooked dhal and butternut squash to the pan and season with salt and turmeric powder. Cook for about 5 to 10 mins.
Serve the butternut squash and dhal curry with rice or roti.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Mashed Pumpkin Salad

Re-posting a recipe from the first week of this blog.

Mashed Pumpkin Salad

Time taken – 20 minutes

Serves – 4

Ingredients

Pumpkin – 250g
Coconut milk – 2 or 3 tbsp
Green chillies – 2
Onion – 1 medium sized, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Lime juice

Method

Chop the pumpkin into chunks, does not need to be small, and leaving the skin on. Remove seeds and clean the chunks.
Boil the pumpkin until it is tender and cooked, for around 15 minutes. Remove skin and mash the pumpkin.
Add the coconut milk, green chillies, onion to the mashed pumpkin and mix well.
Season with salt and pepper, according to your taste, as well as some lime juice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Thuvaram Paruppu Koottu

Re-posting recipe: Today’s recipe is from my great-grandmother, as remembered and occasionally replicated by my mother.

Thuvaram Paruppu Koottu

Time taken: 1 hour, plus soaking time of dal about 3 – 4 hours

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Toor dal/ Thuvaram paruppu – ½ cup
Onion – ¼ + ½
Garlic – 2 + 2
Cumin powder – ½ tsp + ½ tbsp
Fennel powder – ½ tsp
Asafoetida – pinch + pinch
Salt – ½ tsp + more, to taste
Oil – 1 tsp + for deep-fry+ 1 ½ tbsp
Fenugreek – 1 tsp
Tomato – 1 big or 2 small
Dried red chillies – 3
Coriander powder – 1 tbsp
Grated coconut – 3 tbsp
Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
Pepper – 1 tsp
Tamarind extract – ½ cup (thin)
Water – ½ cup + ½ cup (optional)

Method:

Soak the toor dal for 3 – 4 hours.
Chop up ¼ onion and 2 garlic cloves and fry them in 1 tsp oil in a pan.
Add ½ tsp cumin powder, ½ tsp fennel powder and a pinch of asafoetida to the pan. When the spices combine and their aroma starts coming out, add ½ tsp salt.
Add the toor dal to the pan and mix well and quickly remove from heat.
Grind the toor dal mixture, without water or just a little so that it can be made into a slab.
Steam the slab of spiced toor dal.
Cut the steamed block of toor dal into pieces and deep fry.
Make a spice paste by grinding the scraped coconut and chopped chillies with 1 tbsp coriander powder, ½ tbsp cumin powder, ½ tsp turmeric powder, 1 tsp pepper powder and a pinch of asafoetida.
Heat 1 to 1 ½ tbsp oil in a pan and fry the chopped onion (½ onion), 2 garlic cloves and the fenugreek seeds.
When you get the aroma of the fried onion and garlic, add the spice paste, mix well and fry.
Add the chopped tomatoes and ½ cup of water and let the tomatoes cook.
Once the tomatoes are cooked, add the fried pieces of toor dal chunks and ½ cup of thin tamarind extract.
Cook for about 10 – 15 minutes on low heat. If you prefer more gravy in your curry, add ½ cup of water.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Murungaikai Curry

Re-posting recipe: This is my grandmother’s recipe, as remembered and replicated by my mother. For my mother’s recipe, check out this post.

Drumstick curry

Cooking time – 25 minutes

Serves 3

Ingredients:

Drumstick/ Murungai – 1
Potato – 1 large
Onion – ½ medium sized
¼ fresh Coconut ~ ½ cup of scraped fresh coconut
Curry powder – 1 tbsp, can add another 1/2 tbsp for more spiciness
Salt to taste

Method:

Cut the drumstick into 2’’ pieces and chop up the potato and onion.
To the scraped fresh coconut, add some water and squeeze out the first coconut milk and keep aside. Reuse the coconut flakes and squeeze out the second milk by adding some water. If you don’t like to squeeze out the coconut milk by hand, simply use a blender and strain out the first and second milk. An alternative is to use ready-made coconut milk but the different consistencies expected in this dish will not be there. The first milk is richer in consistency and fats while the second milk is thinner in consistency.
In a sauce pan, add four cups of water to coconut milk obtained the second time – the second coconut milk.
Add the cut vegetables (drumstick, potato and onion) to the pan as well as the chilli powder and cook the vegetables.
Once the potato and drumstick pieces are cooked, add the reserved first coconut milk and salt and let it simmer for five minutes before taking off the heat.
Serve hot with rice or pittu or stringhoppers.

A slight variation in my great grandmother’s drumstick curry recipe is that she did not add potatoes to the drumsticks. Just before taking the curry off the heat, she lightly fried some chopped onion, dried red chillies and fennel seeds in a separate pan and added the tempered seasonings to the curry. This gives a nice aroma and flavour to the dish.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.