SuvaiArusuvai - Veg Recipes of India

Sesame Powder can be prepared at home by following a simple process. It helps in enhancing the different South Indian and North Indian dishes.  Ingredients: White Sesame seeds - 100 gms Method: Dry roast sesame seeds till it emits the fried smell. Let it cool and grind it to a fine powder. Store it in an airtight container. This can be stored in fridge to be used for about 2 months. This can be used in south Indian dishes like Vatha Kuzhambus, Araichu Vitta Kuzhambus and north Indian dishes which ask for sesame in gravies.

Upma is one recipe, which is made very fast and very easily. Whenever a fast tiffin for the evening time had to be made, I prefer making this. As far as I know many of the south Indian households add Semolina in their monthly budget. Ingredients: Semolina/Sooji/Rawa - 1 cup Ghee - 2 tbsp Oil - 2 tbsp Ginger - 1 inch piece Green Chilly - 2 nos Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp Broken Urad Dal - 1 tsp Asafodeita - 2 pinches Salt to taste Curry Leaves - few Coriander Leaves - chopped 1/4 cup Water - 2 cups Method: Dry roast rawa. Let it cool. In the same pan add 1 tbsp of ghee and roast the rawa again till it is coated well with ghee. Remove from the pan and spread it on a plate. Add oil and mustard seeds to the hot pan, when the mustard seeds splutters add the urad dal, green chillies, hing, curry leaves and finely chopped ginger. Add water and salt bring it to a boil. When the water boils add the roasted rawa slowly by constantly stirring so that no lumps are formed. Cover the

Many of the Punjabi dishes gets its flavour as this Punjabi Garam Masala is added to it. Find here how to make it. Ingredients: Dhania - 1/4 cup Jeera - 1 cup Pepper - 1/2 cup Cardamom - 6 to 8 Fennel seeds - 1/4 cup Clove - 4 nos Cinnamon - 2 inch piece Black Cumin Seeds - 1 tbsp Bay Leaves - 2 nos Dried Ginger Powder - 1 tbsp Nutmeg - 3 nos Method: Fry all the ingredients except ginger powder in a dry pan for a while till they are warm. Grind it together with ginger powder. Store it in an airtight container.

Maa Ladoo can be made either using Fried Dal or Moong Dal.   Ingredients: Moong Dal - 1 cup Sugar - 3/4th cup Ghee - 1/2 cup Cashew nuts - 20 nos Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp (made from 4 to 6 cardamoms) Method: Fry Moong dal till it turns golden brown. When cool grind it to a very fine powder. (If it is not obtained, sieve and grind again). Grind sugar to make sugar powder. Mix moong dal powder and sugar together. Add cardamom powder to it and mix well.  In 2 tbsp of ghee fry cashewnuts after breaking it into pieces. Add it to the dal flour and mix thoroughly. Heat the remaining ghee and pour it over the flour and mix well. Make small balls when the ghee is hot.

Ingredients: Bombay Rawa or Cheeroot Rawa - 1 cup (Semolina) Ghee - 1/2 cup Sugar - 3/4 cup Cardamom Powder - 2 pinch Method: In a hard bottom pan add 1/4 cup of ghee and add the rawa and fry it till all the ghee is absorbed fully by the rawa. Add 1/2 cup of water to it and close with a lid for a min. Rawa would have got cooked by this time. Add sugar to it and mix well. Add another cup of ghee to it and when it all turns to a mixture, remove from flame and add cardamom powder. Make small balls of the mixture when warm.   Rawa Ladoo is ready

Ingredients: Almonds - 1/2 kg Sugar - 7 cups Cashew Nuts - 25 to 30 nos Cardamom - 12 nos Pachai Karpooram (edible camphor) - a pinch (optional) Saffron strands - a pinch Kesari colour - 1 pinch Ghee - 1 1/2 cups Method: Soak and peel the skin of almonds. Grind it to a very fine paste. Wash the mixer with 1/4 cup of water and add it to the badam paste and make it to a batter consistency. In a hard bottom pan, add sugar and 1/4 cup of water and make a thick 1 string consistency sugar syrup. Add the badam paste to it and keep stirring till both mixes well. In a tbsp of water mix saffron strands and kesari colour and add it to the paste. When the whole mixture starts hardening, add the ghee slowly. (The entire quantity of ghee might be a bit too much, so it have to be added little by little).   Break the cashewnuts into pieces and fry them in ghee. Add it to the hardening paste and mix well. Grind cardamom to a fine powder and add it to the pan. Crush the edible camphor into

The name itself suggests that this is the king of sweets. (Badusha means king in Persian). Ingredients: Maida - 1 cup Butter - 50 gms Ice Water - 2 cups Sugar - 1 cup Oil - to deep fry Method: Add the butter to maida and knead it to rawa or bread crumb consistency. Add ice water to maida slowly and knead it again. Make fine balls with it (care should be taken so that no cracks are formed in the ball). Make thin chappatis out of the balls. Place 3 chappatis one over the other. Spread butter in between the chappatis. Spread butter on the top chappati and sprinkle 1 tbsp of maida over it. Roll the chappatis to form a cylinder. Seal the ends and cut into pieces. Keep the cut pieces in fridge for 30 mins. Make balls of the cut pieces and press them and flatten them. Make a hole in the middle and fry it in oil in medium heat. (Care should be taken that the Badusha is immersed thoroughly in oil for consistent frying). 3 to 4 pieces can be fried at one time. Turn them constantly so

It is very easy to make Rice Coconut Kheer in Microwave than the conventional method. Ingredients: Basmati Rice - 1/5th cup Freshly grated coconut - 2 tbsp Jaggery - 3/4 cup Milk - 1 cup Ghee - 4 tbsp Cashew nuts - 8 nos Cardamom powder - 1 tbsp Method to cook this payasam in microwave: Soak the rice for 15 to 20 mins and grind it to a fine paste along with grated coconut and cardamom powder. In a microwave glass bowl, add the ground paste and 1/2 cup of water mix well and cook it for 4 mins in micro high. Remove from the oven and mash the ingredients with the back of the laddle to avoid forming lumps. Add one more cup of water and microwave it for another 2 mins. Add the jaggery to the bowl and mix well. Keep it in microwave for another 2 mins. Remove from flame and add milk. Mix everything thoroughly and keep it in micro high for another min. In a frying laddle add ghee and fry the cashew nuts till they become golden brown. Add it to the kheer. It really tasted yum

Amla is always very good for hair growth. This pickle recipe helps in increasing the immune system and also helps in increasing the hair volume. Ingredients: Amla - 1/2 kg Fenugreek - 50gms Red Chillies - 10 to 12 Turmeric powder - 1 pinch Groundnut - 2 tbsp Asafodeita - 1/2 inch piece Gingely Oil - 3 tbsp Mustard seeds - 50 gms Cumin - 1/4 tsp Curry Leaves - 1/2 cup Chilly powder - 1 tsp (optional) Salt to taste Method: Boil water in a pan along with some salt. Remove from flame, add Amla and close it with a lid. Let it cool. When cold remove the seeds from the amlas. Grind the amlas into a fine paste. Dry roast fenugreek seeds, mustard, groundnut, curry leaves, asafodeita and dry chillies one by one and grind them to a fine powder along with turmeric powder. Heat the gingely oil in a pan. Add mustard powder, cumin seeds when it splutters add the amla paste and saute it for sometime. Add the grounded powder and mix it well again. Keep sauteing till the oil comes o

The king of Paayasam is Paal Payasam. It is one of the favourite dish for many. And during festivals and marriages, it is prepared as one of the items in menu.  Ingredients: Basmati Rice - 1/2 cup Milk - 2 cups Sugar - 1 cup cardamom powder - 1/4 tsp Cashew nuts - 10 to 12 nos Raisins - 10 to 12 nos Ghee - 2 to 3 tbsp Saffron strands - 1 pinch How to make paal payasam Fry the rice in 1 tbsp of ghee in low flame till it fries and turns golden in colour. Boil milk and once it is done reduce the flame and keep stirring till the 2 litres is reuduced to 3/4th. Add sugar, cardamom powder and saffron strands to it and keep stirring it to mix all together. Add the rice to the milk and keep cooking till the milk reduced to 1/2 and the rice gets cooked. Keep stirring to avoid rice settling at the bottom and burning out. In a pan add remaining ghee and add cashewnuts and raisins and fry till they turn golden brown; add it to the Paal Payasam. 

Roll the lemon with one hand on a counter top to release more juice.  While buying lemon or limes choose the bigger ones as they will be much more sweeter. The skin should be thin so that it will be much much more juicier. To get more juice from Lemons/Limes microwave it in high for 30 seconds and then cut and squeeze

Ingredients: Horse gram - 1 cup Red chillies - 10 nos Asafodeita - 1 pinch Salt to taste Method: Fry horse gram, red chillies and asafodeita in dry pan. When cold add required salt and grind it to a coarse powder.  Add it to hot rice and ghee mix well.  This is very good for cold and it also helps in weight reduction. 

Ingredients: Oats - 1/2 cup Milk - 1 cup Apple - 1/4 cup Orange - 1 no. Grapes - 1/4 cup Banana - 1 medium sized Sugar - 1 tsp Method: Add sugar to milk and boil it. Cook Oats separately in 1 cup of water till soft and tender. Add milk to it. Add the fruits to the mixture and serve it in bowl. This will be in the consistency of porridge and it is a very apt breakfast recipe.

This is made is Thuvar Dal. Spiciness in the powder can be increased or decresed by increasing or decreasing the quantity of Red Chillies. Ingredients: Thuvar Dal - 2 cups Black Pepper - 1 tsp Red Chillies - 6 to 8 nos Salt (Rock Salt) - 2 tbsp Method: In a pan dry roast Thuvar Dal, Pepper, Red Chillies one by one. Add salt at the end and fry it too. Grind it to a fine powder in a mixer. How to serve it? To one cup of hot rice add 1 tbsp of ghee. Add 1 1/2 tbsp of Paruppu Podi and mix well. 

A sweet especially for kids and the kids in all adults. Ingredients: Milk - 2 1/2 cups Drinking chocolate Powder - 4 tsp Sugar - 1/4 cup Cashew - 12 nos Badaam - 12 nos Method: Soak and peel Badam. Grind it along with cashew nuts. Boil milk to 1/2 of the original quantity. Add the cashew and badam paste to it. Mix thoroughly. Add chocolate powder and sugar to and bring it to a dough consistency. Make small balls of it.  Insert lolipop stick into it and freeze it to make chocolate lolipops.  Wrap it into golden or silver foil and twist the ends of the wrapper to make it look like chocolate freeze it. Spread it into small rectangular plates and cut small squares or diamonds to make it look like bar chocolates. To give it as gift to kids, it can be pressed into animal, bird or other moulds, arrange it in a tray and freeze it.

Ingredients: Cashew Nuts - 1 cup Sugar - 1 cup Ghee - 2 tbsp Water - 1/4 cup Method: Soak cashew muts in water for about 15 to 20 mins. Grind it to a fine paste. In a hard bottom pan, add water and sugar. Boil sugar and keep stirring to make one string consistency of sugar syrup. Add the cashew paste to it. Add 1 tbsp of ghee. When it forms a dough consistency lump and doesnot stick to the sides of the pan, then remove it from flame and spread it on ghee smeared plate. When cold cut into desired shapes. (Normally it is cut into diamond shape).

Some thing different and something yummy. Though pure coffee lovers may not approve this, still, it tastes good. Ingredients: Milk - 1 cup Instant coffee - 1 1/2 tsp Boost or drinking choclolate - 1 tbsp cinnamon powder - 1/2 tsp Sugar - 1 tsp Whipped cream - 1 tsp Method: Heat the milk and add instant coffee powder to it. Add cinnamon powder, boost and sugar. Add whipped sugar and serve warm.  This can be served as iced coffee also by adding one or two ice cubes to it.

Many gravies ask for Dhaniya Powder and it is very easy to be made at home.  Ingredients: Fresh Coriander seeds without any holes Method: Remove husk and dust from the seeds. Sun dry the seeds for about an hour. Grind it to a fine powder. Seive it and grind the coarse left over again. Seive again and store it in airtight container. 

Bajji is a very favourite dish of south Indians especially during rainy season. Here is the recipe for home made ready mix bajji batter powder, which can be mixed in water and used whenever needed  Ingredients needed to make the powder. Gramflour - 4 cups Riceflour -  1/4 cup Salt - 2 tbsp Cumin powder - 2 tbsp(optional) Red Chilly Powder - 2 tbsp Asafodeita - 1/2 tbsp Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp Method: Mix all the ingredients together and store it in an airtight container. Better store it in ziploc covers and in freezer. The entire mixture helps in making bajji for 3 to 4 times. Take 1 1/2 cup of this powder and mix with equal amount of water to make a batter. If it is too watery add a little more of powder and if it is too thick add little more of water. The batter should be thinner than dosa batter. 

This payasam if done well tastes like Mysore pak. Ingredients: Bengal Gram Flour - 1/4 cup Ghee - 1/4 cup Sugar - 1/4 cup Cardamom Powder - 2 pinches Cashew nuts - 8 nos Milk - 1 1/2 cups Method: In a pan heat ghee. Add the bengal gram flour to the hot ghee and mix well to form a fine paste. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to the besan flour mix and bring it to boil. Add sugar, Keep stirring to avoid forming lumps. When it forms a thick lump add milk and mix well again. Add cardamom powder. In a pan fry broken cashew nuts till golden brown and add it to the Payasam.

Ingredients: Puffed Rice - 2 cups Cucumber - 1/4 cup (finely chopped or grated) Tomato - 1/4 cup (finely chopped) Carrot - 1/4 cup (grated) Tamarind Chutney - 1 tsp Green Chutney - 1 tsp Fine Sev - 1/2 cup Corn flakes - 1/2 cup Salt to taste Lemon Juice - 1 tsp (optional) For Decoration: Finely chopped coriander leaves - 1/4 cup Method: In a large salad bowl or shallow pan add puffed rice, sev and corn flakes. Blend well. Add cucumber, tomatoe and carrot to the puffed rice and toss it well. Add tamarind chutney, green chutney (diluted in 1 tbsp of water), salt and toss again till all of them blends well. Put in individual serving bowls. Squeeze little lemon juice on top and add coriander leaves on top

Ingredients: Red Tomatoes - 6 to 8 nos Red Chillies - 4 or 5 Asafodeita - 1/4 tsp Bengal Gram Dal - 2 tbsp Turmeric powder - 1 pinch Oil - 2 tsp Grated Coconut - 2 to 4 tbsp (optional) Salt Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Urad dhal - 1 tsp Curry Leaves - few nos How to make it: Cut tomatoes into fine pieces.  In a pan heat oil and fry the red chillies. Add bengal gram dhal and saute till it becomes golden brown in colour (the flame should be low). Add tomatoes, turmeric powder and asafodeita. Keep stirring the tomatoes till they become soft. Remove from flame and let it cool.  Grind it with coconut and salt.  Temper it with mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves in a tbsp of oil. This goes well with Idly, Dosa, Oothappam, Idiyappam and chappati.

Every Diwali it is a must to take Diwali Legiyam as it will ease out the stomach after eating a lot of sweets and savouries. Though now a days it is readily available in the market, it is something very easy to be made at home too. Ingredients: Coriander seeds - 1/4 cup Cumin seeds - 6 tbsp Sukku (Dried Ginger) - 1 inch piece (or) 2 tbsp of dried ginger powder Pepper - 6 tbsp Thippili (available in shops) - 5 gms Saunf - 4 tbsp Ginger Juice - 1/2 cup Jaggery - 2 cups Ghee - 1/2 cup Method to make Diwali Legiyam Fry saunf, cumin seeds, pepper and thippili in dry pan one by one and powder them to a fine powder. Soak coriander seeds in water and grind it to a fine paste. Drain the juice alone using a muslin cloth. Mix that coriander juice with ginger juice and ground powder. In a pan add 1/4 cup of water and jaggery to make jaggery water. Strain jaggery water so that it is free of impurities. Heat the jaggery water again in the same pan and when it comes to a boil add the

Grape juices made with black grapes are too good to taste and also too good to look at too.  Ingredients: Grapes Black - 1 handful Sugar - 2 tbsp Method: Grind grapes in a juicer grinder (specially the grinder which have juicer with strainer). Pour it in a tall glass add sugar to it and mix well. Have it fresh added with one or two ice cubes.

Many people skip breakfast which is not really a good habit. The food that is taken in night is taken before 2 to 3 hours of going to bed and after that about 8 hours of sleep and in the morning too many have just a cup of coffee or milk. It is advised by doctors to have a healthy and nutrition filled breakfast by around 7.30 or 8.00 am every morning.  It is better to avoid fatty foods during breakfast and have foods rich in protein. (South Indian breakfast foods of Idly and Dosa have a good amount of protein). Foods like Oats, Wheat flakes, broken wheat etc are also healthy foods for morning breakfast. It is also advised to include a fresh fruit or a fruit salad in the morning breakfast. A good balanced healthy breakfast stabilizes one's blood sugar and helps in improved body metabolism.

Lactating or Nursing mothers should take nitritious and balanced diet which includes fruits, green vegetables and vitamins provided by the doctor if any. The food intake should include all types of food and the food should be highly rich in protein and fibre and less of fat. The calorie intake should be atleast 1800 calories per day. Lactating mothers should avoid junk food and heavy dieting should be avoided during the entire period.   There should be considerate amount of calcium intake also in one's food which comes from milk, yogurt, cheese etc. To avoid dehydration, lactating mothers should intake lots of water as the oxytoction that is released during breast feeding makes the mothers more thirsty. Whenever thirsty, the lactating mothers can take water, fruit juices, vegetable juices and soup. Low fat milk can also be taken. It is better to avoid coffee and tea as much as possible.

Every one loves eating. Kids especially love to indulge themselves in eating their favourite food. Their favourite food include chips, snacks and many other fried items. The kids who indulge themselves tend to turn obese and special care should be given to such kids. Though kids being obese is also genetic if both the parents are obese, kids should be taught healthy eating habits right from child hood.   There is a fag that fat kids are healthy. But the truth is plump means Obese and these kids are exposed to increased health risks. These kids when turn adults have increased risks of getting gall bladder disease, liver disease, type 2 diabetics, heart diseases etc. The obese child when becoming adult also tend to suffer from poor self esteem and it might also lead to depression.   Parents should take care of including more of vegetables, fruits in their diet and reduce the intake of fried foods.

Expecting mothers are at more risk towards developing Upper Respiratory Tract Infection. Consuming atleast 7 servings of fruits and vegetables in moderate quantity will help in reducing that risk. URTI includes common cold, sinus etc which leads to asthma or pneumonia too. Pregnant women are prone to get more of these common cold and flu very easily. Eating fruits and vegetables help in inproving one's immunity towards these diseases and especially more in pregnant women.  Pregnant women are recommended to consume atleast 5 servings of fruits or vegetables per day and more the servings (to a max of 6 or 7), helps in increasing the immunity. Pregnant women need more fruits and vegetables to cope up with the extra demands of the body.

One slice of bread have the same amount of calorie that is there in one chappati. But it is always better to eat one chappati than to eat one bread.

A very famous sweet dish. I dont think this is something specific to any particular region of India. But have to do some research. Ingredients: White Pumpkin - 2 cups (grated) Milk - 2 cups milk Milk Maid - 1/2 cup Sugar - 1 cup Khoa- 1/2 cup grated Cardamom Powder - 1 pinch Cashew Nuts - 10 to 12 nos Ghee - 1/4 cup Kesar Powder - 1/2 pinch Method: Squeeze out the excess water from the Pumkin. In a flat hard bottom pan boil milk and when it comes to boil add grated pumpkin and cardamom powder. In 1 tsp of water mix kesar powder and add it to the pan. Keep stirring till the milk gets absorbed by the pumpkin. Add sugar and cook in low flame. Add 2 tbsp of ghee and stir continuously till the ghee gets separated. Add grated khoa to the cooked halwa. The halwa will turn dry when cooked fully. In ghee fry the cashewnuts till golden brown. Add it to the halwa

Moong Dal, which can also be made as Kosambari/Kosumalli Ingredients: Moong Dhal - 1 cup Grated Coconut - 3 tbsp Salt - as per your taste Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp Urad Dhal - 1/2 tsp Green Chilly - 2 Curry Leaves - some A Asafodeita - a pinch Oil - 1 tsp Ginger - a small piece. Method: Cook the dal in water on stove top (If pressure cooked the dal will become mashed too much.). Drain the excess water. In a pan add oil and mustard seeds. When it splutters add urad dal and hing. Add curry leaves, green chilly and ginger (grated or cut into small pieces). Stir for a min till the urad dal turns golden in colour. Add the cooked dal, salt and grated coconut and mix thoroughly in low flame. Remove from flame and let it cool. Neivedhyam is ready.

For neivedhyams, no onions or no garam masalas. But as the powder that is to be added for the sundal is made ready and added along with the sundal that is made every day. The powder is a bit spicy and thats why it is named as Masala Sundal. Ingredients needed for the spicy powder: Urad Dal whole - 1/2 cup Channa dal - 1 cup Red Chilly - 20 nos Dhaniya (Coriander seeds) - 2 cups. Hing - 1 inch piece (solid hing) Grated coconut - 1 cup (fry it in a dry pan till they turn slightly golden brown in colour) Oil - 2tbsp How to make the spicy powder: In a pan add  1 tbsp of oil and fry Dhaniya first and then add remaining ingredients except hing and Red Chillies. When the dals turn golden brown, remove and spread it on a plate and let it cool. Add the remaining 1 tbsp of oil and fry hing first and then add red chillies to the oil so that the smell will not spread the entire house. Grind all the ingredients together to a fine paste along with the coconut. Store in an airtight cont

Though spicy sundal is the main neivedhyam for Navarathri, whole moong dal, Karamani dal, Bengal gram dal can be made as sweet sundal using Jaggery. (It is better not to use sugar). Ingredients: Broken Channa Dal (Bengal Gram Dal), Moong dal or Karamani - 2 cups Grated coconut - 1/4 cup Cardamom powder - 2 pinches (or made from 4 to 6 nos) Jaggery - 1 cup Method: Soak the dals (except broken channa dal) over night. Pressure cooks the dal. In a pan add 1/5th cup of water and jaggery. Make thick jaggery syrup. Filter it and pour it back again to the pan after washing it. Add the cooked dal. Allow the extra water to evaporate. Add grated coconut and cardamom powder and mix well. Sweet sundal is ready for Neivedhyam

Coconut Sundal or Regular Sundal           This type of Sundal can be made very easily and it is very simple too. Ingredients needed: Any kind of whole dal  - 2 cups Grated coconut - 1/4 cup Red chilly - 2 to 4 Salt to taste Asafodeita - 1 pinch Oil - 1 tsp Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Broken Urad Dal - 2 tbsp Curry Leaves - a few Turmeric Powder - 1 pinch (optional) How to make? Soak the dal over night. (if it is broken dal, soak for 2 hours and cook in open pan). Pressure cook the whole dal. Drain the water completely. Heat a pan and add oil add mustard seeds and when it splutters add urad dal, hing powder, turmeric powder and red chillies. Add the cooked dal and salt. Mix everything thoroughly. Add curry leaves and grated coconut and mix again.  Neivedhyam is ready.

It is very auspicious to make Pittu during Navarathri Fridays. Ingredients: Processed Rice Flour - from 4 cups of rice (you will get 2 to 3 cups of rice) Jaggery - 4 cups Coconut - 1 no. Big Cashew Nuts - 20 nos Thoor Dal - 1/2 cup Ghee - 1/2 cup Salt - 1 tsp Turmeric Powder - 1 tsp Cardamom - 10 to 12 nos Method to make Pittu : In a pan dry roast processed rice flour till it turns slight red in colour. Seive the flour and ensure that there is no lumps formed.  Transfer the bowl to a big shallow basin. Heat 2 cups of water along with salt and turmeirc powder. Let the water be warm. Grind the thuvar dal to a fine powder. Mix it well with the rice flour. Add the water slowly to the rice flour and mix the entire rice flour slowly. It should be mixed thoroughly by hand ensuring that no lumps are formed. Transfer the entire content to a thin cloth and steam it in cooker. Once done, transfer it to a flat basin. Grate the coconut and mix it well with the steamed rice flour.

Recipe for Sarkarai pongal made of sarkarai. This is not as famous as the Sarkarai Pongal made of Jaggery. My grand ma makes this on Pongal day itself. But my mom makes it during Kanu. Ingredients: Milk - 1/2 ltr Raw Rice - 1 cup Moong Dal - 1/3 cup Sugar - 1 cup Cardamom - 3 to 4 nos Cashew nut - 12 nos Ghee - 1 cup Method: Wash and pressure cook rice and moong dal in 4 cups of water. When done mash the rice well. Add sugar and milk and mix well. In low flame cook for another 5 mins by stirring constantly. Remove from flame, powder the cardamom and add it to the Pongal. Fry cashew nut in 2 tbsp of ghee untill it is golden brown in colour and add it to the Pongal. Add the remaining ghee. Can be served as a part of breakfast along with Ven Pongal and Medu Vadai.

Kashmiri Dum Aloo can also be made in microwave.  Ingredients: Baby Potatoes - 18 to 20 Kashmiri Chillies - 5 to 6 nos or 1 tsp of Kashmiri Chilly Powder. Curd - 2 cups unsour. Oil to deep fry Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp (optional) Dry ginger powder - 1 tsp Fennel Powder - 2 tbsp Gingely oil - 1/4 cup (Mustard oil can also be used, if taste and smell can be tolerated) Clove - 2 nos Asafodeita - a pinch Roasted Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder - 1/2 tsp Salt to taste Method to make Kashmiri Dum Aloo in Microwave: Wash and pierce the potatoes with fork. Micro high the potatoes for about 5 to 7 mins by placing the potatoes directly on the turn table. Make a paste of Kashmiri chillies and whip it with the curd. In a microwave glass shallow container add 1 tsbp of oil and 1 tbsp of ghee for about a min. Add the curd paste and cover it with a lid and cook in microwave high for 3 mins and medium high for 4 mins. Add the potatoes and cook in micro high for abo

Whenever it is Navarathri, the evening Neivedhyams are only Sundals. Channa Dal Sundal is one among them. Ingredients: Channa Dal (Bengal Gram Dal) - 2 cups Oil - 2 to 3 tbsp for tempering Salt to taste Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Urad Dal - 1 tsp Red Chilly - 2 nos Green Chilly - 2 nos Curry Leaves - a few Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup Method: Soak the Dal in warm water for an hour. Cook in open flame till the dal become soft and tender. Do not over cook. Drain the excess water and let it cool for some time. In a pan heat oil and add the mustard seeds when they splutter add urad dal, curry leaves, green and red chillies. Add cooked dal and add necessary salt. Mix everything together without breaking the cooked dal. Add grated coconut and mix again. Remove from pan and transfer it to bowl. 

Many of us want to do dieting but the main problem one faces is compulsive eating. Some vital signs of compulsive signs are: Thinking about food, especially their favourite food a lot make them forget that they are in diet and make them eat those foods a lot. Many people treat food as a stress relievers. They eat a lot and lot just to come out their stress and depression. Even after feeling full and a heavy stomach, many people keep eating which is the resultant of Compulsive eating. People who get too anxious while eating. People who worry  or keep day dreaming while eating. People who over eat are also under the compulsive eating disorder. People who eat too fast or too slow. People who want to complete everything that is set on the table. Those who feel guilty when they eat just because they are eating. People who eat secretly as they think they should not eat. People who cant indulge themselves even with one piece of a bar chocolate. People who just j

Acidity have become very very common ailment in the recent times. People tend to get it more easily due to the current lift style. Apple which keeps the doctor away, definitely keeps acidity away if it is taken with cinnamon. Ingredients: Apple - 2 nos Sugar - 2 tbsp Milk - 2 cups (chilled milk) Cinnamon Powder - 1 tsp Ice cubes - 4 nos Method to make: Peel and dice apples to cubes and grind it in a blender to a fine puree along with milk and 1/2 cup of milk. Add the cinnamon powder and the remaining milk and whip it well. Serve with 1 or 2 ice cubes. This makes 4 glasses of milk shake. Can be served with small cubes of apple on top. Health Benefits of Cinnamon Powder.

1/2 a tspn of cinnamon a day lowers the LDL cholesterol and have a regulatory effect on blood sugar.Studies show that cinnamon reduces the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells. Cinnamon have an anti-cloting effect on blood. Cinnamon powder combined with a tbsn of honey every morning before breakfast relieves arthritis and helps them walk with ease within a month. Cinnamon acts as a natural preservative as it stops the growth of bacterial growth. Smelling cinnamon helps in boosting up one's memory and improves the cognitive function. It have a good source of manganese, fiber, iron and calcium. Being carminative in nature, it helps in reducing nausea in pregnant women. It helps in reducing flatulence when taken in milk shakes and soups.

Cinnamon is available in the market, in both rolled bark form or in powdered form. As Cinnamon powder tends to loose its flavour very easily, it is better to powder it at home in small quantities and store them. How to grind cinnamon powder? Break cinnamon to small pieces. Roast whole cinnamon in a dry pan. When cold grind it to a fine powder. Use small mixie jar to grind it. But it is better to grind it in a mortar or a pestle. Cinnamon powder is used in marinades, stews, soups, cakes etc.

A spice obtained from the bark of ever green tropical trees. There are more than 250 different varities of cinnamon. Many have very pungent flavour. Cinnamon comes in quills. They come in dark brown or in tan colour. Though both whole and powdered cinnamon are available in the market, it is better to buy the whole cinnamon and grind it to a fine powder at home to make Cinnamon Powder. Now a days, organic cinnamon is available in the market (which is ofcourse a bit costlier). How to select Cinnamon? Check for the date of expiry if it is a packed one. But if it is purchased from spices shop in loose quantities, then check out whether it is lump or with moisture. Better not to choose such variety.

Green chilly is one of the ingredients that is used in many house holds to make chutney, sambar etc. It is necessary to store them properly, even though it is kept in fridge. If not stored properly, they tend to get spoiled very easily. How to store green chillies? To store green chillies, remove the stem and wash them. Wipe them dry. When it is dry and without any water, store it in an air tight container. As it is washed and stored, it can be used directly in cooking.

Had a bunch of coriander leaves and also a bunch of mint leaves. Not enough to make chutney but there is no other side dish at home for Idlies. So thought of making this thokku. Ingredients: Mint Leaves - 1 cup Coriander Leaves - 1 cup Ginger - 2 inch piece Green Chilly - 2 nos Asafodeita - a pinch Salt to taste Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp Tamarind Paste -2 tbsp Gingely Oil - 3 tbsp Method to make Mint - Coriander thokku Wash and drain mint leaves and coriander leaves separately. In a pan heat 1 tbsp of oil and add ginger, green chillies and mint leaves. Let it cool and grind it to a fine paste with coriander leaves, salt, asafodeita and tamrind paste. Heat remaining 2 tbsp of oil in a pan and add the ground paste to it. Add mustard seeds and when it splutters add the ground paste and stir so that it doesnot settle at the bottom of the pan. Cook till the oil separates from the sides of the pan. When cool store it in an air tight container. When kept in fridge it can be use

In generally Fenugreek is added to the Sambar Powder itself but if it is not added to it a separate powder can be prepared to enhance the taste of Sambar, especially those sambars that are made specifically as side dishes. Like Instant Sambar . How to make (Vendaya) Fenugreek Powder? Take 1/2 cup of fenugreek or say 50 gms and fry it in dry pan till they turn brown. Care should be taken not to blacken it. Remove from flame and when cold, grind it to a fine powder and store it in an airtight container. How to use it in Sambar? After all the procedures of sambar making are over, just before removing from flame, add 1/2 spoon of this fenugreek powder and stir well.

A day have to be started with healthy breakfast and one of the very famous south Indian breakfast dish is Ven Pongal commonly known as Pongal.Ven - White, why this is called as Ven Pongal? thas because, whenever we talk of Pongal in South India, it is only the Sweet Pongal or the Sarkarai Pongal . So to differentiate this spicy pongal which is also white in colour, it is called as Ven Pongal Ingredients need to make Pongal Rice - 1 cup Moong Dal - 1/4 cup Black Pepper - 1 spoon Jeera (Cumin Seeds) - 1 spoons Ginger - 1 inch piece Green Chillies - 2 nos Asafodeita - a pinch Salt to taste Ghee - 1/4 cup Cashew Nuts - 10 to 12 How to prepare Ven Pongal the way it is prepared in hotels and restaurants? In a pan fry moong dal and rice separately till they become golden in colour. Wash them separately then mix them together. The total quantity of rice and dal is equal to 1 1/2 cups. Add 4 cups of water and pressure cook rice and moong dal together. When done remove and ad

My MIL makes it whenever there is a need to do instant Neivedhyam. Most of the time, she will do some prayers or the other and as an offerring prepare this in a jiffy. Ingredients: Cooked Rice - 1 cup Sugar - 1/2 cup or Jaggery - 1/2 cup Milk - 1 cup Cardamom powder - 1 pinch Cashew Nuts - 4 Ghee - 2 tbsp Method to prepare Instant Rice Payasam: Mash the cooked rice with the back of a laddle. Heat milk and when hot add the mashed rice, sugar or jaggery and keep stirring. Remove from flame. Add cardamom powder. Fry cashewnuts in ghee and add it to the payasam. This can be done very easily in about 10 mins.