Vadani Kaval Gheta - Quick and Easy

Traffic on last Friday was especially very tiring. I sat in the car for almost 1 hour 30 minutes before I reached home. After that horrible traffic I was not in the mood to go out for dinner, did not want to spend more than 15-20 minutes in the kitchen, and did not want to eat same old daal-rice/khichadi. So l looked around in my stash of sauces and found a bottle of green curry paste, can of coconut milk so I decided to make vegetable green curry. While I was making the curry, I remembered I have some brown rice noodles too! Voila! A new dish was born!!! Serves 2 - for dinner 3-4 servings of Rice noodles - cook per directions on the packet. Drain and set aside. Toss with little bit of oil to prevent them from sticking. 1 Large Potato (I used Russet) 1 Large Onion Fist size Cauliflower Fist size Broccoli 1 Small Carrot (or few baby carrots) 1/2 cup diced Butternut Squash Fistful of Cilantro 1 Small Blob of Ginger 2-4 tbsp Green Curry Paste Salt per taste 1/2 cup Coconu...

My cousin visited us couple of years ago. One evening we were so busy chatting that we forgot to cook for dinner in time! So she decided to give me a break from cooking and make her pulav. It was quick and with nice cucumber raita on side, we had nice meal ready in just 20 minutes. I have been regularly making that pulav ever since! It comes out great with brown rice or quinoa too. 1 cup Long Grain Rice 1 small Potato 1 small Shallot (or very small onion) 10-12 Green Beans Few Florets of Califlower 1 small or 4-5 Baby Carrots 2-3 Green Chilies Few Cashews (Split lengthwise) Salt as needed 2 tbsp Oil Masala -  2 Cardamom pods, 2-3 black peppers, 2 cloves, 1 stick Cinnamon, 2 Bay Leaves, 1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds 2 cups Hot Water Preparation - Wash and drain rice and set aside and then start prep work.  Peel and cut Potato into 1" cubes. Slice shallot/onion. Remove tips of green beans and cut into 1" long pieces. Cut baby carrots into 4 pieces lengthwise, or simi...

Once in a while I get this urge to make nice parathas. Yesterday i made simple pav bhaji paratha. Idea was to make simple mixed vegetable stuffed paratha but decided to change things as I remembered pavbhaji midst of grinding vegetables! Here is how I made them - 1/2 cup Frozen Green Peas 1 medium Potato 1/2 small Tomato 1/2 Bell Pepper (I used red) - optional 1 medium or 5-6 baby carrots Cauliflower floret of fist size 1 tbsp Pav Bhaji Masala Salt as needed Fistful Chopped Cilantro Small blob of Ginger Whole wheat Flour as needed Preparation - Cook potato in microwave until done. Set it aside to cool.  Wash all the vegetables. Remove seeds from bell pepper if you are planning to use it. Add all the vegetables in grinder, add ginger and grind until coarse paste. Make sure there are no big chunks of vegetable left. Now peel potato, grate it in a large bowl you want to use to make dough. Add ground vegetable paste. Add salt, paavbhaji masala, chopped cilantro. Mix ...

I make this sprout salad very frequently in summer because weather is really good for making sprouts. I like it more with moong sprouts than mataki sprouts. Moong spruts has bit more bite to it than mataki. 2-3 cups Sprouted Moong 1 Large Green Apple or Plum (or any sweet & sour fruit you like) 1 small red onion Salt per taste 1/2 tsp Sugar Fistful of chopped Cilantro Juice from 1/2 Lime Preparation - Dice onion and fruit you are using. If using blueberries or blackberries, no need to chop. Mix everything in a large bowl. Adjust salt and lime juice according to taste. Let it sit in refridgerator for at least 20-30 minutes before serving. Enjoy on a warm summer day topped with little bit of sev. Tips - I also make typical cucumber-tomato-sprout-chat masala salad often. But this fruit version is my favorite. Partially raw mango tastes good too but not the sweet ripe mango :) 

This recipe was shared by my classmate about 15 years ago and I still make mine from scratch with this recipe! 2 cups Cooked Rice (I use brown) 1 Golf Ball size Tamarind 1/2 tbsp Jaggery 1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds 1 tsp Chana Daal 1 tsp Urad Daal 2-3 Dried Red Chilies (or according to taste) 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 10-15 Curry Leaves 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder Pinch of Hing 1/4 cup Peanuts (couple of fistful) 2 tbsp Oil Salt per taste Preparation -  Soak tamarind in 1/2 cup hot water for at least 10-15 minutes.  Squeeze the pulp and strain to remove all the fibrous stuff.  Cool the cooked rice in a plate. Once cooled down, add salt, turmeric and 1 tsp oil. Mix and keep aside. Heat oil in a non-stick pan, add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Add chana daal, urad daal and red chilies. Let them sizzle and change color a bit. Now add hing and curry leaves. Saute for a minute. Then add peanuts and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add tamarind extract and cook on low ...

This is very popular bhaji in Maharashtra. It is made on most of the festive occasions. Here is how I like it - 2 large Russet Potatoes, boiled 2-3 Green Chilies 1 small piece Ginger (1/2") 2-3 Cloves of Garlic 1 small Yellow Onion Salt per taste Sugar per taste (optional) For Tempering - 3 tbsp Oil, 1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds, 1/4 tsp Cumin Seeds, Pinch of Hing, 1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder, few Curry Leaves For Garnish - Fistful of chopped Cilantro, 1-2 tbsp freshly grated coconut (or Frozen) Preparation - Peel boiled potatoes while warm and can be handled properly. Dice them in 1/2" dice. Add little salt and chopped cilantro to potatoes, mix well and set aside.  Chop onion in 1/2" dice. Grind ginger-garlic and green chiles to coarse paste without adding water. I prefer using my mortar pestle. Heat oil in thick bottom kadhai, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Add hing and turmeric powder once mustard seeds start spluttering. Then add curry leaves and saute for...

This is a very basic versatile recipe that can be used with almost all the winter and summer squashes. I use same formula for butternut squash, pumpkin, acorn squash, zucchini, lauki/dudhi (opo squash). It tastes really good with boiled potatoes. It is a great condiment to have with any kind of paratha, or can replace salad. You can use the formula with roasted bell pepper or steamed green beans too!!! Following proportions are merely a guideline so please change according to your taste. Ingredients - 1 cup cubes of Butternut Squash 1-2  Green Chilies 1/2 cup Yogurt Salt per taste 1-2 tbsp Roasted Peanut Powder Chopped Cilantro Tempering/PhodaNi - 2 tsp Oil, few mustard and cumin seeds, few curry leaves. Preparation - Put butternut squash cubes and 2 tbsp water in a microwave safe bowl. Steam for 3-4 minutes until squash is completely cooked. Let it cool to room temperature. Slit green chilies lengthwise. Heat oil in small tadka kadhai. Make tempering as usual. Add gr...

This recipe is a very hit at my place. Awesome taste can be made in 5-6 minutes if you have boiled potatoes ready. A friend send me Maayboli link recently and vouched for the taste. I am glad I tried his suggestion. Original recipe can be found here -  http://www.maayboli.com/node/42898 I am just converting it to English with my additional notes - 3-4 Medium Potatoes 2 Small Tomatoes (I used Roma but it should not matter) 1/2 cup Chopped Cilantro 1 tbsp Coriander Seeds 1 tsp Cumin Seeds 1/2 tsp Fenugreek Seeds 1/2 tsp Aamchur Powder (I did not use as my tomatoes were very sour) 1-2 tsp Red Chili Powder (or per taste) 1/2 tsp Garam Masala 1/2 tsp Sugar Pinch of Turmeric Powder 2 tbsp Oil Salt Per Taste Preparation - Boil potatoes as usual. Cool down and peel. Chop potatoes in 1/2" cubes. Chop tomatoes in 1/2" cubes. Mix tomatoes, potatoes and chopped cilantro. Grind coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds to coarse powder. Mix red chili powder, sal...

( Link to Marathi Recipe ) My ajji used to fast on Mondays and that too without salt. She rarely ate anything on her fasting days, a tea during the day, or a banana . Once in a while she would make sweet tapioca khichadi. It is been 15 + years since I ate sweet khichadi. My mom makes it sometimes for us. Today was suddenly reminded of her sweet khichadi, so posting it here on a new blog! 1 cup Soaked Sabudana 1 / 4 cup Roasted Peanut Powder 1 / 4 cup Sugar 1 tbsp ghee (can be omitted) A little freshly grated coconut Preparation - 1 . Please mix soaked sabudana and peanut powder. 2 . Heat ghee(if using) the thick bottom pan. 3. Add sabudana mixture and saute until sabudana turns translucent. 4. Cover and let it cook for 3-4 minutes on very low heat. 5. Remove from heat, add sugar and mix well. 6. Cover and let it sit for 4-5 minutes or sugar is melted completely. 7. Sprinkle freshly grated coconut and enjoy! Notes -  Do not add sugar while sauteing as sugar ca...

( Link to English Recipe ) माझ्या आज्जीचा सोमवारी उपवास असे. पण त्यादिवशी ती मीठ खायची नाही. तसे तर ती फार काहीच खायची नाही. एखादा चहा दिवसभरात, असेल तर एखादे केळ यावर तिचा उपास चाले. पण एखादेवेळी आमच्या आग्रहाखातर ती साबुदाण्याची गोड खिचडी करत असे. तिच्या हातची ही खिचडी खाऊन आता १५+ वर्षे झाली. मम्मी करते कधीतरी आमच्यासाठी. आज अचानक तिची खूप आठवण झाली म्हणुन हा पोस्ट प्रपंच. १ कप भिजवलेला साबुदाणा १/४ कप दाण्याचे कुट १/४ कप साखर १ चमचा तूप (वगळले तरी चालेल) थोडेसे खोवलेले ताजे खोबरे कृती -  १. दाण्याचे कुट आणि साबुदाणा एकत्र करुन घ्यावा. २. वापरणार असाल तर जाड बुडाच्या कढईत तूप तापवा. त्यात साबुदाणा घालून बारीक गॅसवर परतावा. खिचडी परतून करतो त्या पद्धतीने करुन घ्यावी. ३. गॅसवरुन उतरवून खिचडीची एक वाफ जाऊ द्यावी. त्यावर साखर घालून मिसळून झाकण ठेवावे. ४. वाफेने आणि गरम खिचडीने साखर विरघळून खिचडीला चिकटते. ५. वरुन ताजे खोबरे शिवरुन आस्वाद घ्यावा टिपा -  कढईत परतत असताना साखर घालू नये. करपण्याचा संभव असतो. या खिचडीला तेल तूप नसले तरी चालते.