Red Lentils Masala

I first tasted Masoor Dal (Red Lentils) when my coworker's sister-in-law, who is from Tanzania, prepared it, for our potluck lunch, roughly 1.5 years ago. I got all excited, thought I would make myself the same and I bought a bag of Masoor dal. Well, the Masoor dal sat in the cupboard for 1.5 years, till this afternoon, when I happened upon a great recipe for Masoor dal, here. This is the first time I ever cooked with Masoor dal.

This recipe is not my original recipe, but I have adapted the recipe from the link above.

Masoor dal is yet another variety of lentils. They are possibly more commonly used in North India than in South India. It is also noted that India is not the only country where they are used in cooking.

This recipe involves making the spice mix first and then the actual dal is prepared, using the spice mix.

Ingredients for Spice Mix (Goda Masala):
Coriander seeds - 1 cupBlack peppercorns - 3 Tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1/4 cup
Cloves - 2 Tsp
Cinnamon - 2 sticks
White Sesame Seeds - 1/3 cup
Star Anise - 6 pods
Black cardamon - 6 pods
Bay leaves - 2
Sesame seed oil - 1 Tbsp

Part I - Preparation of Goda Masala: In a frying pan, heat up the sesame seed oil. Bring oil to medium heat.
When the oil is hot, add the ingredients for the masala. Stir frequently, so they don't burn.
Remove from heat, let the ingredients cool down.
After ingredients are cooled, grind into a mix in a blender.
Set 2 Tsp aside for the Dal prep.

Ingredients for Dal:
Red lentils - 1.5 cups
Red chili powder - 3 Tsp
Onions - 2 large - diced
Garlic - 3 cloves - minced
Tomatoes - 3 large - diced
Tomato paste - 2 Tsp
Sesame seed oil - 2 Tbsp
Goda masala - 2 Tbsp
Filtered water - 1 cup

Red Lentils

3 Good Lookin' Roma Tomatoes - last seen with some freshly made Goda Masala :)

Part II - Preparation of Masoor dal:

1. Cook the Masoor dal in a pressure cooker or a sauce pan. Cook until the lentils are soft.
2. Heat-up the sesame seed oil in a large pan. Add the onions, garlic. Cook until the onions start to turn brown.
3. Add the cooked lentils, red chili power, water and the Goda masala and stir frequently.
4. Turn off the heat, add the tomatoes and stir until the tomatoes are mixed in.

The finished product!

Serve piping hot with a slice of lime and a thinly sliced red/white onion. Goes well with rice and flat breads!

The finished product was so good, even Chako turned vegetarian :)

Bon appetit' :)

Tindora Stir-fry (பொறியல்/Poriyal in Tamil)

The Tamil word Tindora Poriyal literally translated would mean "fried Tindora". Tindora aka Coccinia grandis aka Ivy Gourd is a vegetable I have wanted to cook in the past, but never got around to it mainly because I thought I did not have a good recipe for it. But, recently, I "happened upon" some Green Beans Poriyal, which gave me an idea for a recipe for Tindora Stir-fry.

Ingredients:
Tindora - 1 LB
Sesame seed oil - 2 Tbsp
Toor Dal (lentils) - 2 cups
Shredded coconut - 1/2 cup
Red chilies - 3-4
White lentils - 2 Tbsp
White onions - 2 Large ones - diced
Curry leaves - 4 - finely chopped
Cilantro - a few strands for garnish
Asafoetida, Salt - a pinch

Preparation:

1. In a large pan, heat-up the sesame oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions, curry leaves, red chilies and turn down the heat.
2. Cook until the onions start to brown. Add the chopped Tindora and cook on low heat for a few minutes. Turn up the heat to medium.
3. Add the cooked lentils, shredded coconut and cook for another two-three minutes, covered. Stir occasionally
4. Add salt and garnish with cilantro.

Finished product!

Serve piping hot with rice or flat breads!

Tindora Stir-fry Wraps:
Warm-up a flat bread, coat the inside with Mint Chutney. Add some hot Tindoora Stir-fry, roll'em up and enjoy! Optionally, one can sprinkle some Nutritional Yeast on the warm stir-fry, for a cheesy taste/texture!

Bon appetit' :)

Spicy Mint Chutney (Pudina Thogayal)

I made Mint Chutney for dinner last night. This recipe is from my belated mother, who was an excellent cook. Mint chutney is a popular south indian dish. My mother would make this at least once a month or so. It is very easy to prepare and is a great accompaniment to rice and many varieties of breads.

Ingredients:
Mint leaves - 1 bunch
Urad Dal (White Lentils) - 1 cup
Red Chilis - 5pcs
Tamarind Paste - 1 Tsp
1 Tbsp Sesame Oil

Pinch of salt
Sprinkle of Asafoetida

Preparation:
Heat up the oil in a pan.
When the oil is hot, turn down the heat.
Add the Urad dal.Stir frequently.
Add the asafoetida, chilies.
Stir frequently until the lentils are light brown.
Remove from heat, put into a bowl.

Remove the stems from the Mint leaves, wash them.

Once the lentils cool down, blend the contents of the bowl and the mint leaves, tamarind paste in a blender.
A coarse paste of the blend is ideal, does not have to be a fine paste.

Add salt (little) to taste!

Serve hot with rice or flat breads (chappati, naan, pita, etc).

Bon appetit' :)

Hot n Sour Lentils

For dinner tonight, I made two dishes. One was Simple Spinach and the other was my brand new creation: Hot n Sour Lentils.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
4 new potatoes - diced
2 Large Onions - diced
3 Roma Tomatoes - diced
1 Can of Pineapple chunks (or fresh pineapple)
10 Green beans - cut into 2 cm long pieces

3 cups of Lentils (Dal) cooked --- Cook the lentils so that they are not mushy for this recipe. Texture is part of the "taste", if you know what I mean :)

2 Tbsp Sesame Oil

1 Tsp chilly powder
1 Tsp cumin
1 Tsp Mustard seeds
2 Tbsp of finely chopped ginger root
1 Tsp White Lentil (Urad Dal)
2 Tbsp shredded curry leaves
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

3 cups of filtered water

Pinch of salt
Sprinkle of Asafoetida

Preparation:
Heat up the oil in a large pan.
When the oil is hot, turn down the heat.
Add the mustard seeds. Cover with lid.
Add the asafoetida, curry leaves, ginger.
Add the chopped onions, white lentils and turn down the heat.

Add 1 cup of water, turn down the heat. Let simmer.

In a sauce pan, heat up 2 cups of filtered water. When the water starts to boil, add the potatoes and the green beans. Cook until the potatoes are tender, not mushy. Drain the water into the pan with the onions and turn-up the heat to medium.

Add the lentils, tomatoes, potatoes, green beans, to the onions and cook on medium heat for 2 minutes.
Add the pineapple chunks and cook for another minute or so. If fresh pineapples, cook for two minutes.

Simmer for a few more minutes until the mix is not too runny (until much of the added water has evaporated).
Stir frequently!!

Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro!

Add salt (little) to taste!

Serve hot with rice or flat breads (chappati, naan, pita, etc).

Bon appetit' :)

Cherry, Banana Breakfast Smoothie

For breakfast today, I made a Cherry, Banana smoothie. I was experimenting with the recipe and I added 2 carrots to the mix. Carrots can give a pureed texture to a smoothie. If you don't care for this, you may omit the carrots altogether or use extracted carrot juice.

Ingredients:

Kale - 1 cup
Baby spinach - 1 cup

Carrots - 2 peeled

Cherries (Frozen or fresh) - 6-8

Banana - 1 peeled

Flax powder - 1 Tbsp
Protein Powder - 1 scoop
Green Superfood - 1 scoop
4-6 Ice cubes
2 cups of filtered water

The finished product - yummy!

Bon appetit' :)

Kale, Cherry Strawberry Smoothie

Today's breakfast smoothie!

Ingredients:
Kale - 2 cups
Baby spinach - 1 cup
Strawberries (Frozen or fresh) - 4
Cherries - 6-8
Flax powder - 1 Tbsp
Protein Powder - 1 scoop
Green Superfood - 1 scoop
4-6 Ice cubes
2 cups of filtered water

Bon appetit' :)

Sweet Chayote-Coconut Curry

Chayote squash is one of my favorite vegetables. On Monday, I prepared a new dish: Sweet Chayote-Conconut Curry. This dish requires no red chilies or black pepper, and hence the end product is actually a bit sweet, which is great. I posted another recipe for a Chayote Squash Stew once before, but this new recipe is quite different from that one.

 

Ingredients:
6 Chayote Squash - peeled and diced
1 Tbsp Coconut Oil
5 Tbsp shredded coconut (fresh/frozen/dry)
1 Tsp cumin
1 Tsp Mustard seeds
1 Tbsp of finely chopped ginger root
1 Tsp White Lentil (Urad Dal)
2 Tbsp shredded curry leaves
4-6 curry leaves (A)
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
3 strands of cilantro (B)

1/2 cup filtered water
Pinch of salt
Sprinkle of Asafoetida

Preparation:
In a blender or a food processor, grind the curry leaves (A), the 3 strands of cilantro (B), cumin and the coconut into a paste.

Heat up the oil in a large pan.
When the oil is hot, turn down the heat.
Add the mustard seeds. Cover with lid.
Add the asafoetida, curry leaves, ginger.
Add the chopped Chayote squash.
Add 1 cup of water, turn down the heat. Let simmer.

After the Chayote pieces are cooked (tender if poked with a fork)...
Add the spice paste.
Stir!

Simmer for a few minutes until the mix is not too runny (until much of the added water has evaporated).
Stir frequently!!

Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro!

Add salt to taste!

Serve piping hot or at room temp! This dish tastes good hot or warm.

Bon appetit' :)

Radish Sambar

Asian Radish, Onions and Tomato Sambar
Mullangi/Muli/Daikon is a variety of Asian Radish. It is juicy and delicious when cooked properly. I prepared Radish Sambar with Onions and Tomatoes on Monday. It was not a "traditional" dinner, but we were happy with the outcome.

There are two common ways of preparing sambar: a) use ready-made sambar powder/mix b) make your own sambar wet-mix. I consider the latter the real McCoy and I personally like the taste of sambar prepared using the latter technique.

I posted a recipe for Onion and Tomato Sambar, once before. The recipe I used this time is very similar, except for a couple of changes.

Ingredients:
Toor daal 2-3 cups
Tamarind paste - 1 Tsp
Tomatoes - about 4, diced/sliced
Asian Radish - about 3, diced into tidbit-sized chunks
Pico de Gallo - 2 cups (make your own or buy)
Onions - 2 cups - chopped
Coriander seeds - 1 Tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp
Red Chilies - 5-6
Fenugreek Seeds - 1 Tsp
Shredded Coconut - 1 cup
Turmeric powder - 1 Tsp
Sesame seed oil - 2-3 Tbsp
Garnish: chopped curry leaves and cilantro

Preparation:

1. Cook the lentils until soft in a pressure-cooker or in a conventional sauce pan.
2. In a sauce pan, dry-roast the coriander seeds, cumin, red chilies.
3. Grind the the ingredients from step 2 and the grated coconut in a blender. Use little water (the mix should be moist/wet but not runny).
4. Add 2 cups of water. Once the water starts to boil, add the cooked daal and the spicy paste from step 3, to the water. Turn down the heat a notch or two. Add the tamarind paste, turmeric and a pinch of asafoetida. Stir the mix so the lentils don't stick to the bottom of the vessel.
5. Add salt to taste and garnish with cilantro and the chopped curry leaves.
6. Add the sesame seed oil and stir.

Here is the finished product!

Bon appetit' :)

Wild Blueberry Smoothie

Today's breakfast smoothie!

Ingredients:
banana - 1 or 3/4ths (if you dog insists on the other 1/4th)
Kale
Red Chard
Wild Blueberries (Frozen or fresh)
Kiwi - 1 skinned/cleaned thoroughly
Beet - 1 cleaned/skinned
Flax powder - 1 Tbsp
Protein Powder - 1 scoop
Green Superfood - 1 scoop
4-6 Ice cubes
2 cups of filtered water

The rest of the story:

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Bon appetit' :)