SCHEZUAN PULAO / RED PULAO

SCHEZUAN PULAO / RED PULAO


Things required :  Refined oil - 1 1/2 tablespoonful, ghee - 2 teaspoonful, jeeragam - 1/2 tspn, pattai - 2nos.., clove - 1 no., cardamom . 1 no., green chilly - 1 no., beans - 5 nos., carrot - 1no., potato - 1 medium, green peas - little (if available),  basmati rice - 1 tumbler, everest kashmiri chilli powder - 1 tspn, everest kitchen king masala - 1 tspn, salt, water - 1 3/4 tumblers.


PREPARATION ;


1.  Slit green chilly 1 no., cut vegs into thin slices.
2.  In a tawa splutter 1/2 tspn jeeragam, 2 pattai, 1 clove and 1 cardamom in 1 1/2 tbspn of refined oil and 2 tspn of ghee.
3.  Add green chilly 1 no. slit vertically.
4.  Add the cut veg and fry for a min.
5.  Add the washed and drained basmati rice.
6.  Add 1 tspn of kashmiri chilli powder, 1 tspn of kitchen king masala powder and 1/4 tspn of turmeric powder and required salt.
7.  Stir without breaking the rice till all the water is absorbed.
8.  In a cooker pour 1 3/4 tumblers of water directly and transfer the contents from tawa to the cooker.
9.  Stir well.
10.  Close it with the lid.
11.  When steam comes well, put the weight valve and simmer the stove (important) and keep it for exactly 5 mins.  (why I say 5 mins exactly is, if you keep for some more time, pulao will be sticky and lesser time is also not enough ).
12.  Open after 12 mins and stir and serve hot.
Always use dosa karandi for all these pulao varieties as this will not break the rice.

PUDHINA PULAO / GREEN PULAO

PUDHINA PULAO / GREEN PULAO


Things required : Refined oil - 1 1/2 tablespnful, ghee - 2 teaspoonful,  Cinnamon (pattai) - 3 nos., cloves - 3 nos., cardamom - 1 no.,   green chillies - 3 nos., ginger - 1 inch, garlic - 2 nos, pudhina leaves - 1 small bunch, beans - 5 nos., carrot - 1 no., potato - 1 small, fresh peas - handful (leave this if its not available), basmati rice - 1 tumbler, water - 1 3/4 tumblers, salt.


Preparation :


1.  Take pudhina leaves and wash well and keep.  No need to cut.
2.  Crush 1 inch ginger and 2 nos. of garlic in mixie without adding water.
3.  Cut 5 nos. of beans, 1 no. carrot and 1 small potato into thin slices.
4.  Slit 3 nos. of green chillies vertically.
5.  Wash basmati rice and keep.
6.  In a tawa, heat 1 1/2 tablespoonful of refined oil and 2 tspn. of ghee.
7.  Splutter 3 pattai, 3 cloves, 1 cardamom and add slit green chillies and ginger garlic paste and then pudhina leaves. Fry this for a min.  Then add the cut veg and fry for a min.  Then add washed and drained basmati rice.
8.  Keep stirring with a dosa spatula carefully without breaking basmati until all water is absorbed.
9.  Add salt.
10.  In a cooker pour 1 3/4 tumblers of water and transfer the contents from tawa to the cooker.
11.  Mix well and close .
12.  When steam comes, put the weight valve and simmer the stove (Important) and keep it for exactly 5 mins.  Since you wont get the whistle,  see to it that you switch it off in 5 mins.
13.  Open after 12 mins and stir once softly without breaking basmati rice. Tasty green pulao is ready.

KADALA PARUPU PAYASAM OR POLI PAYASAM

KADALA PARUPU PAYASAM :

Things required :  Kadala paruppu (bengalgram) - 1 handful, coconut scrap - 2 handful, jaggery or vellam - 2 handful, cardamom - 3 nos., cashewnuts - 5 nos., milk - 2 karandi or more as required.

Preparation :

1.  Dry roast kadalaparuppu to golden colour and add water to the level of paruppu and pressure cook with the lid. 

2.  Cool it and dont drain the water.  Grind it in a mixie along with the coconut scrap (2handful) and cardamom and vellam to a paste (can be slightly coarse also).  If jaggery (vellam) is not very clean, add little water to jaggery and mix it on hand and filter it and use while grinding the cooked dhal.

3.  Transfer it to a thick bottomed vessel, wash the rest of it with water and transfer.

4.  Boil this.  It should not be very thick while you start boiling.  You can add water if it is thick.

5.  Keep stirring and boil for 3 - 5 mins. and remove from stove.

6.  Add milk to the above only after removing from the stove.  This is important.  Add milk to the required consistency. 

7,  Add roasted and broken cashewnuts.

This is a very tasty payasam and can be prepared for puja also.

SEMIA PAYASAM

SEMIA (VERMICILLI) PAYASAM :


Things required :    Semia (not very thin semia) - handful, ghee - 1 spn., sugar - 1 and 1/2 karandi approximately, cardamom powder - little,  cashew - 5 nos., milk - 3/4 lit, rice flour - 1/2spn.


Preparation :


1.  In a spoon of ghee first roast the cashewnuts and break into small pieces and keep it aside.
2.  In the same tawa roast a handful of semia (bambino and MTR are really good) until it turns white or slightly golden colour.  Dont roast it to brown colour.  Dont take it unroasted also.
3.  In a thick bottomed vessel boil 3/4 litres of milk and when it is boiling add the roasted semia and stir without forming lumps.
4.  Simmer the stove and keep stirring now and then initially and continuously stir when it starts thickening.
5.  When it is thick, mix half a spoon of rice flour in a tablespoon of milk and pour it in the boiling semia.  This is to avoid  cuddling when you add sugar to the boiling semia in milk.
6.  Add 1 1/2 karandi of sugar to the above.  It ll immediately become thin after adding sugar.  So boil it for some more time and then remove from stove.
7.  Add cardamom powder 1/2 spoon and roasted and broken cashew.
If you feel it has thickened too much after cooling add some more milk and not water for rich taste.

CARROT KHEER

CARROT KHEER :


Things required :  Fresh carrot - 1/4 kg, milk - 3/4 lit, sugar - approximately 1 and half karandi, cardamom powder - little, roasted cashews - little.


Preparation :


1.  Peel of carrots and cut vertically into 2 or 4 pieces.  
2.  Pour milk upto the level of carrots and close it with a lid and pressure cook for 8 mins after you put the weight valve.
3.  Cool it and drain milk and keep it separate.  First make the carrot to a fine paste with litte of this milk.  Check if it is finely ground.  Pour some more milk if needed.  Then transfer it to the thick bottomed vessel.  Pour the rest of the drained milk to the rest of the carrot paste and transfer it to the vessel.
4.  Boil it for 8  mins with the balance milk (totally you need 3/4 lit of milk).  For added taste you can thicken the rest of the milk on the other stove and pour it to the carrot paste and boil.
5.  Remove from stove and add 1 and 1/2 karandi of sugar and stir well.
6.  Add cardamom powder (little is enough) and roasted and broken cashews.
This is very tasty if it is chill also.
For added taste and richness you can grind the soaked and peeled badam 6 nos. along with the carrots and prepare.

GOBI GULISTHAN

GOBI GULISTHAN :

Things required :  Cauli flower - 1 no., onion - 2nos., tomato - 2 nos.,  (if you dont want too much gravy take 1 each), ginger - 1/2 inch, curd - 2 cups,  jeeragam - 1/2 tspn, bay leaf - 1, turmeric powder - 1/4 tspn,  kashmiri chilli powder - 2 tspn,  coriander powder - 2 tspn,  cashewnut - 4 nos. (make a paste of it with little milk).


PREPARATION :
1.  Cut cauli flower and put in lukewarm water with little salt and keep for 3 mins and then drain.
2.  Fry cauliflower to slightly golden colour and keep aside.
3.  In a tspn of oil slightly fry onions and make a paste of it without adding water and keep it. Slightly fry tomatoes and ginger and make a paste of it separately.  
4. In a kadai, pour a tablespoonful of oil and a tspn of ghee and splutter jeeragam, bay leaf and add  
onion paste and fry for sometime.  Then add tomato ginger paste and fry for few mins.
5.  Add 2 cups of curd to the above and mix well without charring.
6.  Add 1/4tspn turmeric powder and 2 tspn of chilli powder and mix well.
7.  Add coriander powder 2 stspn and salt and mix well.
8.  Add the cashew paste made with little milk and mix well.
9.  Finally add fried cauliflower.
10.  If it is very thick add little water and boil and remove from stove.


This also comes out very well and it is very good with chapathis.

GOBI MANCHURIAN

GOBI MANCHURIAN :


Things required :   Cauliflower - 1,  ginger garlic paste - 1 tspn, salt, cornflour - 1 tspn, maida - 1 tspn, green chillies - 10 nos. (finely chopped), tomato sauce - 1 tablespoonful, soya sauce - 2 tablespoonful, coriander leaves, onion 2 nos.,  finely chopped garlic - 1 tbspn., dhania powder - 1 tspn.


PREPARATION :


1.  Cut cauliflower (not v small but medium size) and put in lukewarm water with 1 spoon salt and keep it for 3 mins. and drain.
2.  Mix 1 tspn maida, 1tspn cornflour, 1 tspn gingergarlic paste, little salt in little water.  
3.  Pour the above on the  cut cauliflower and add 5 nos. finely chopped green chillies and mix well.
4.  In little oil (you can use the same oil for manchurian preparation also) fry the above until it is golden brown and keep it aside.
5.  In a kadai pour a tablespoonful of oil and 1 tspn ghee and when it is hot add 5 nos. of finely chopped green chillies, 1 tablespoon of finely chopped garlic and then add finely chopped onion (2 nos.).
6.  When onion is fried (when it turns brown slightly it gives a good smell), add 1 tspn of dhania powder and add little water and let it boil for few mins, then  add 1 tbspn of tomato sauce, 2 tbspn of soya sauce, little salt and then add the fried cauli flower.
7.  Fry for 3- 4 mins.  If you want it to be dry, leave as it is.  If you want a gravy, add little water and keep in stove for few more mins.
8.  Remove from flame and add finely cut coriander leaves.  
Serve hot with chapathi, fried rice, etc


This is a simple method I ve tried and it comes out really well.  Be careful to add salt for all these kind of dishes.