Tag Archives: Onion

Turmeric Coriander Bread with Seeni Sambol

May this special day of Wesak, which celebrates the day of birth, enlightenment and death of Buddha, bring you peace!

Nil manel

Blue water-lily – the national flower of Sri Lanka

I am sharing this post on Angie’s challenge for this month with my recipe for turmeric coriander bread filled with seeni sambol. Ever since I started baking last year, I have found that I enjoy baking different types of bread. One of my favourite and successful breads is rosemary olive oil bread (recipe source: Jessie@A Hint of Honey). Using her recipe as a base, I have sometimes played around with herbs to make different versions of the bread and today, I would like to share my Sri Lankan twist to this bread.

Turmeric bread

Turmeric Coriander Bread with Seeni Sambol

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: average
  • Print

Ingredients:

  • Flour – 2 to 2 ½ cups, approximately
  • Turmeric – 1 tsp
  • Coriander – 2 to 4 tbsp fresh coriander leaves (as per your taste) or 1 tsp dried powder
  • Pepper – pinch
  • Salt – ½ tsp
  • Sesame/ Gingelly oil – 2 tbsp
  • Warm water – 1 cup
  • Sugar – 1 tbsp
  • Yeast – 2 tsp
  • Seeni Sambol – recipe provided in this post

Method:

  1. Stir in 1 tbsp sugar and 2 tsp yeast in 1 cup of warm water in a mixing bowl and let it sit for about 10 mins till it becomes frothy.
  2. Sift the flour and set aside.
  3. Add a cup of flour to the yeast mixture and add the salt, turmeric, pepper, chopped coriander or powder to the mixing bowl.
  4. Mix well before adding the sesame oil and add the remaining flour ¼ cup at a time till the dough is formed. Knead for a few minutes till it is smooth.
  5. Lightly dab the mixing bowl with a little oil and cover, leaving the dough to rise for about an hour.
  6. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and roll out the dough.
  7. Spread the seeni sambol mixture over the surface. Starting from one end, roll the dough into a log.
  8. You could leave the dough as a log or connect the ends to make a round bread or cut into 8 equal pieces. If you cut into 8 pieces, make each piece into a ball ensuring that the ends are closed and that the filling is not seeping out of the dough.
  9. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased baking tray. Cover and refrigerate till about 30 minutes before you plan to bake.
  10. Leave the tray out in the kitchen for about 30 minutes before brushing the bread with either a little melted margarine or dissolved sugar.
  11. Bake the bread at 175⁰C/340⁰F for 20 mins. Check at intervals as the baking time differs depending on the oven.
  12. Serve warm with a nice vegetable soup.


”Fiesta

Seeni Sambol

Since I started this blog, I have developed this tendency of asking fellow Sri Lankans I meet  to contribute one of their favourite recipes to the blog. One such instance was when I invited my Mandarin language classmates to contribute to the blog and starting today, over the next few weeks, the guest posts will feature a few recipes shared by my class.

Today’s guest blogger is Hasini Wanninayake. She is currently an international studies undergraduate at Kelaniya university and plans to join the foreign service after her graduation.

Seeni Sambol

This is a side dish that my mother often makes at home. It can be eaten with hoppers, kiribath or in a sandwich.

seeni sambalTime taken: 30 mins

Serves 5 to 6

Ingredients:

  • Onions – 5, large
  • Maldive fish – ¼ cup (optional)
  • Ginger – 1”, crushed
  • Garlic – 2 or 3 cloves
  • Cinnamon – 1 piece
  • Cloves – 3 or 4
  • Curry leaves – 1 or 2 sprigs
  • Rampe  – 1 or 2” piece
  • Sera/ Lemongrass – ½ “ pieces
  • Tamarind paste – 1 tsp
  • Vegetable oil – 4 to 6 tbsp
  • Sugar – 2 tsp
  • Salt, to taste

Method:

  1. Peel and finely chop the onions.
  2. Mix the first nine ingredients (onions to lemon grass) in a bowl with a pinch of salt.
  3. Heat the oil in a shallow pan.
  4. When the oil starts to sizzle, add the mixed ingredients to the pan and keep stirring for 10 to 15 mins.
  5. When the onions are well fried and dry, add the tamarind paste to the pan.
  6. Continue stirring until the ingredients are well mixed.
  7. Fry a few minutes longer until the mixture turns dark brown.
  8. Add the sugar and keep stirring for a little while longer. Adjust salt, if required, before removing from heat.

Recipe source: Hasini Wanninayake.

Ash plantain and Onion Fritters

Today’s recipe is a lovely snack – fritters. I like the ash plantain fritters more than the onion ones.

Ash plantain and Onion fritters

Time taken: 40 mins

Serves 4

Ash plantain and onion frittersIngredients:

  • Ash plantain – 1
  • Onion – 1
  • Wheat flour – ½ cup
  • Salt – ½ tsp
  • Chilli powder – ½ tsp
  • Turmeric powder – ½ sp
  • Pepper – ½ tsp
  • Low fat oil, for deep-frying

Method:

  1. Boil the ash plantain and then peel. Slice the cooked plantain lengthwise into 4.
  2. Peel the onion and slice them, such that the rings in each slice do not fall apart.
  3. Make the batter by mixing the wheat flour, chilli powder, turmeric, salt and pepper with ½ cup of water.
  4. Dip the ash plantain and onion slices into the batter, coating them well.
  5. Deep-fry the batter coated ash plantain and onion slices until golden brown on both sides.
  6. Serve warm with tea or as a side-dish at lunch lunch.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

Vendhaya Kulambu

Today’s recipe is Vendhaya Kulambu/ Fenugreek curry, a Jaffna curry that is regularly made at home.

Vendhaya Kulambu

Time taken: 30 mins

Serves 3 or 4

Vendhaya kulambuIngredients:

  • Onion – 1 cup, chopped
  • Fenugreek seeds/ Vendhayam – 2 tbsp
  • Curry leaves – 2 sprig
  • Coconut milk – 1 cup
  • Tamarind juice extract – ½ cup
  • Curry powder – 1 ½ tsp
  • Salt – ¼ tsp
  • Low fat oil – 2 tbsp

Method:

  1. Soak the fenugreek seeds in water for about 10 mins. Drain and keep aside.
  2. Heat a tbsp of oil in a pan and fry the soaked and drained fenugreek seeds for a couple of mins.
  3. Add the curry leaves and chopped onion to the pan, along with another tbsp of oil.
  4. Saute till the onion changes colour and the aroma of fried onions wafts about.
  5. Add ½ cup of tamarind juice and ½ cup of coconut milk along with the curry powder and salt to the pan. Mix well.
  6. Increase the heat and let the ‘kulambu’ cook for about 5 – 10 mins. Do not let it dry up.
  7. Add the remaining ½ cup of coconut milk and let it simmer for another 5 mins before removing from stove.
  8. Serve with pittu or rice.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.

‘Ayurvedic’ salad

Today, I will share what my mother calls her ‘Ayurvedic’ salad because of the vegetables she uses in it. This salad is particularly good for regulating your sugar and cholesterol levels. I like it because it is colourful and crunchy and combines a vegetable I don’t like so much – radish – in  a more appetising way.

‘Ayurvedic’ salad

Time taken: 5 – 10 mins

Serves 2

Ayurvedic salad

Ingredients:

  • Radish – 3 tbsp, grated
  • Bitter gourd – 2 tbsp, grated
  • Tomato – 2 tbsp, finely chopped
  • Onion – 3 tbsp, finely chopped
  • Carrot – 2 tbsp, grated
  • Coriander – a few leaves, for garnish
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • Lime juice, to taste

Method:

  1. Place the salad ingredients – grated radish, bitter gourd, carrot and the chopped onion and tomato – in a bowl.
  2. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Toss to combine.
  3. Garnish with coriander and drizzle some lime juice over the salad.

Recipe source: Raji Thillainathan.