Lentils(dal) is predominantly a major player in my kitchen. We love dals and we usually accompany it for our dinner with roti's / phulkas. The protein in the dal helps to satisfy our hunger faster and thereby eat less. I consume these often enough to cut the amount of rice I eat per day. I cannot do without rice though, hence eating minimal works for me. Also including greens at least twice each week is another habit in my kitchen. The nutrients that it has to give is immense. Try to buy fresh greens and cook them on the same day. That way nutrients are not lost too much.
Recently on my recent grocery shopping, I came across the freshest looking Red Chard. I bought them home and thought of making a stir fry. I was not too sure if it will go well with my khasta roti, so thought of making it into a dal instead. The afternoon lunch was a joke with not so much of protein hence I thought I will make a mixed dal constituting 5 different lentils cooked together and add in the red chard alongwith it. It turned out to be a very satisfying meal.
Method
In a saucepan, in 1/2 tsp oil add the spices. Saute for few seconds until aromatic. Add the onions and tomatoes along with salt, stir for 1 min and then add ginger and garlic.
Add the lentils(washed with cold water until clean water runs through),
stir for few more minutes and then add about 3 cups of water (or vegetale stock) along with turmeric.
Close the lid and cook for 8-10 minutes until the lentils are almost soft.
Add the chopped chard, close the lid and cook until the greens have wilted.
Its really hard for me to even think, that few years earlier, I used to hate soups. I was cajoled, threatened, blackmailed by my mom to start having soups to no effect. Then during my college days, a friend of mine managed to get me hooked to Tomato soup which was totally delicious in our cafeteria - but that was that! No other soups for me. Then after marriage, I started trying out various soups - well because I wanted to just - you know- try it out. Surprisingly I started liking the soups - No, don't think me conceited , but somehow my soups actually inculcated the habit and now here I am willing to try all kinds of soups.:)
Borscht (borsht or borshch ) is traditionally an Eastern Europe soup where the prominence is given to Beetroot along with other vegetables. There are basically two variations of this soup – hot and cold and since we are not fans of cold soup, I opted for the former. It is totally yummy with minimal ingredients and effervescent flavors. The color is deep red thanks to the beetroot and its only enhanced further with the addition of Beetroot Kvas. This is a recipe from a ‘Detox health-plan cookbook’ which I adapted quite mildly for my tastes.
Method
To prepare Beetroot Kvas
Grate one beetroot, add it to 2/3 cup of water and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Cover and set aside for about 30 min.
For Borscht
In a saucepan, in 1/2 tsp of olive oil, saute the onions until soft (yes, chop onions first - otherwise they will look 'bloody' like this one :)
Chop beetroot, celery and carrot into thick strips and then along with garlic add them to the onions. Saute for 2 seconds with little salt (about a pinch or so).
Add the tomato puree and saute for another 1-2 min.
Tie the bay leaf, peppercorns, herbs and cloves in a muslin cloth. Add about 3 cups of water/stock to the saucepan, drop the muslin cloth with the stock, cover and cook for 20-30 minutes until the vegetables are soft.
Remove the muslin bag, add the strained Kvas, season to taste and serve garnished with chives.
This is also my entry for SWC : Soups hosted by Neha conceptualized by Cooking Station How to Remove Beetroot Stains
I love Beets and use it so often for my recipes. While I love the color, I personally am not so sure about seeing the color everywhere in my kitchen - wooden boards, counter tops, my clothes etc. Here are some tips which have helped me to counter this 'bloody' trail.
1. Its always better to clean right after cutting the beets. Don't let it dry out. Makes cleaning a bit harder.
2. Better safe than sorry - so don't wear your snow white, ultra light colors when cutting Beets - old worn out clothes are a good idea! :) Or else wear an Apron.
3.Having Lemons are such a boon. If your wooden chopping board has stained - sprinkle some salt over its "wounds" / stains - let it sit for 15-20 minutes, then with a chopped lemon rub it on the stains until the stain slowly dissoves. Sometimes if the stain is not dark enough, just lemon juice rubbed on the stained part for 20-30min is enough.
Another staple in my pantry after Chickpeas is Black Eyed Peas. Since I have been on a pantry cleaning run, I saw a small handful of these left over in the packet. I wanted to use them but at the same time, I had few guests coming over and it sure won't be enough for all of us. Hence thought of adding some potatoes to make the dish more mealy and of large quantity. These are also known as cowpeas and are rich in protein, magnesium, iron and folate. They are also immensely versatile.
They can be used in multiple ways from soups, to yummy and crunchy snacks to main course dishes. They also help to fill one up faster thus making me to resort to these for salads etc. I am on an everlasting diet remember!!!!! This curry is very simple to make and has hardly any prep work. All you need is to soak these, chop few potatoes, dump them along with spices together in one pot and forget them for next 20-30 min and Viola! yummy curry ready.
Method
1.Saute cumin seeds in 1/2 tsp oil. Add onions, ginger garlic, salt along with bay leaf and spices.
2.Add the potatoes, saute them for 2-3 minutes and then add drained black eyed peas
3.Add the tomato puree and cook for another 1-2 min
4.Add sufficient water to cover the mixture - about 1 to 1-1/2 cups, close the lid and let it cook for 15-20 min.
5.Once the black eyed peas have been cooked, add the ground paste - cook for another 5 min.
During Breakfast She: “Honey! What do you want for breakfast? Is idli ok?” He: “mm..Dint we have Idlis just yesterday? I want toast today…”
Packing Lunch She: “Would you like me to pack Idlis for your box?” He: “What..(Sulking!) no..no..They will be cold! Ok Ok your hotbox may help..but I don’t like idlis for lunch!”
Dinner She: “I feel so tired..What a day! I don’t feel like cooking either…How about Idlis?” He: “What’s with you and idlis! Never thought you were idlyentric!” [that’s Idli + eccentric = idlyentric for you]. She: (Sign!) “No I am not Idly crazy or something! It’s just that I have lots of idly batter – Just wanted to use it that’s all.”
I am sure this situation would have been “been there and done that” in many of your homes. It’s the same in mine too. Become enthusiastic and grind lots of idly batter and then cope with the family who suddenly become idly phobic. Enter idly clones and you end up making different varieties of tiffin with idly batter – idly fry, idly upma, kuzhi paniyarams,idly roast and ..and..yes Uthappams.Uthappams are South Indian pizzas, or you may call it savory pancakes and are mostly made with leftover Idly batter. They are instant, quick, simple and utterly delicious – of course provided you have the idly batter in hand. But then going by the taste, having leftovers in this case is warranted!:)You want to have some left over idly batter – so you end up making more batter. Any topping of your choice accompanied with spicy chutney’s make the meal.
Method
1.If you have stored the batter, make sure you bring the batter to room temperature before cooking.
2.In a skillet, greased with approx ¼ tsp oil and rubbed with half sliced onion, pour out 1 ladle of batter in the center.
3.It should be like a pancake, thick and shaped into a circle and then top it with little onion, tomato, chilies and cilantro.
4.After 2-3 min, when done – you will know if you lift it with your spatula easily without it sticking to the bottom- turn it the other side. Cook for another 2-3 min. You can pour about ¼-1/2 tsp of oil if needed around the uthappams.
5.Remove and serve. The aroma that’s wafts is amazing. Serve it with suggested accompaniments.
Close the lid and cook for 8-10 minutes until the lentils are almost soft.
