Masoor Masala

Masoor (whole) or  Red Lentils as it is also known as, are low in fat and high in protein and fiber, and they have the added advantage of cooking quickly unlike other pulses. No overnight soaking is necessary.

I generally make a simple curry using garlic with this lentil without any masala and it is everyone's favourite. But this time I tried Tarla Dalal's recipe with slight changes and it turned out really delicious. It had a non-vegetarian flavour to it !

Ingredients

Masoor (Lentil) - whole	1 cup
Onions	2 medium
Tomato	1 large
Oil	1-2 tbsp
Salt	As per taste
Chopped Coriander leaves	1 tbsp
To be ground into paste:
Garlic cloves	7-8
Kashmiri chilies	4
Coriander seeds	2 tsps
Cumin seeds	1 tsp
Ginger	1-1/2 inch piece

Method:

1. Wash and soak the whole masoor in water (about 2 cups) for about half an hour. Then add one mediun onion (cut into large pieces) into it and pressure cook it for about 12-15 mins.
2. Slice the second onion and cut the tomato in large pieces and keep aside.
3. Grind to a paste all the ingredients mentioned under “ground to paste” adding little water if necessary while grinding.
4. Next, heat a pan with oil on a medium flame. Add the sliced onions and fry for about 3mins or till the onions are translucent.
5. Now, add the ground paste and saute it for another 3-4 mins.
6. Add the cooked masoor and salt. Mix well and allow it cook for about 5mins in the gravy.
7. Add tomato pieces, stir well and let it cook for another 10 mins. If the gravy is very thick, add a little water.
8. Remove from flame. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Ready to pressure cook

Ingredients to be ground to a paste

Preparation time : 15 mins

Cooking time : 40 mins

Serves : 6

Note:

• This is a good accompaniment for rice or chapattis.
• Kashmiri chilies are used for its colour rather than heat. If Kashmiri chilies are not available, you can use Byadgi Chilies (available in Karnataka and Maharashtra) and the result is the same.
  I used Byadgi chilies in this recipe. You can vary the quantity as per your taste.

Cabbage Rolls

This recipe is from my old collection but somehow I have never managed to try it out until now. As you all know, cabbage is a low calorie and high fibre vegetable. It is good to include this in your regular diet. Apart from salads or stir-fried, a variety of dishes can be prepared from this wonderful vegetable.

I was very excited to try out this recipe.
So I started my cooking in right earnest and once done, I was eager to taste it. Appearance wise they looked very tempting. I cut one roll into four pieces; gave one to my spouse and took one for myself. I took one bite – it was delicious but at the same time, I could feel the smoke coming out of my ears and noticed that my hubby was also going through the same predicament. We of-course realized that the two small green chilies were the culprit. They looked so harmless that I even added a dash of red chilly powder ! So take care while using the type and number of chilies.

I quickly got out the tomato ketchup bottle poured some over the pieces and we could manage to eat the rest of them with relish.

I can say for sure that these rolls, rock ! Try it out and see for yourself.

           

Ingredients:

Cabbage leaves	6
Boiled Potato	1 large
Grated (fresh) carrot	1/2 cup
Boiled or frozen green Peas	1/2 cup
Onion	1 medium
Tomatoes	1 large
Green chilies	1-2
Garlic	3-4 cloves
Ginger	About 1” piece
Turmeric powder	1/2 tsp
Red chilly powder(optional)	1/2 tsp
Garam masala powder	1 tsp
Salt	As per taste
Oil	For shallow frying
Coriander leaves (chopped)	For garnishing

Method:

1. Peel and dice the boiled potato. Chop onion, ginger, garlic, green chilies tomatoes and coriander and keep them aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan. Add chopped onions, ginger, garlic and green chilies and saute it till the onions are translucent.
3. Add all the powders (turmeric, chilly and garam masala) and fry for a few minutes.
4. Next add chopped tomatoes. When tomatoes turn soft, add green peas and grated carrot and boiled and diced potatoes. Mix well. Add salt and if required, add a little water. Stir well and allow it to simmer for a few minutes or until all the water has been absorbed and the curry is dry. Remove from flame.
5. Lastly add chopped coriander leaves, mix well and keep it aside. The stuffing/filling is now ready.
6. Next, blanch cabbage leaves in hot salted water for 2 – 3 minutes and remove and drain well.
7. Now fill each blanched cabbage leaf with a little of the above prepared filling and roll it and keep aside.
8. In this way prepare all the rolls.
9. Now, heat a non-stick frying pan and add a few drops of oil. Place the prepared cabbage rolls in it and fry it lightly on one side and gently turn it and fry it on the other side too taking care that the mixture does not spill out. Do not brown the cabbages. The crispiness of the cabbage should be retained.
10. Serve hot with tomato sauce.

Here, I forgot to include onion and garlic in the picture.

Cabbage leaves being blanched

Cabbage Rolls served with tomato sauce

Preparaion time: 20 mins

Cooking time: 20 mins

Makes : 6 rolls

Note:

• This can be best served as a starter/ appetizer. Cut each roll into bite size pieces and serve it with tomato sauce or any chutney.
• Before blanching the cabbage leaves, if necessary, you can cut off the hard part of the cabbage for easy rolling of the leaf. Do not discard it but the same can be utilized in a mixed vegetable curry.
• Any stuffing/filling of  your choice also works out well.

Carrot and Ginger Soup

At the onset, I wish all my friends, readers and relatives, a very Peaceful, Healthy, Happy and a Prosperous 2014. I hope the new year has brought glad tidings to you all.

So lets start the New Year by eating healthy foods. On a cold day, a hot soup is always welcome. Its a perfect food for this season. The addition of ginger and freshly ground pepper gives that extra zing to this soup. Besides, carrots are a good source of vitamin A. So eat healthy and be happy.

Ingredients:

Carrots	About 300 gms
Ginger	2” piece
Olive oil	1 tbsp
Onion (chopped)	1 medium
Veg stock/ Water	3 cups
Salt	as per taste
Pepper (freshly ground)	As per taste
Coriander leaves (chopped)	For garnish

Method:

1. Wash, peel and chop carrots and ginger separately and keep aside.
2. Heat a saucepan with olive oil on a low flame. Add chopped onions and ginger and saute it till the onions are translucent.
3. Next add chopped carrots and stir it for a few minutes.
4. Add 2 cups of water or veg stock and increase the flame. Let it boil. Once it starts boiling, lower the flame and allow it to cook. This may take about 25-30 mins.
5. Once the carrots are cooked, add salt. Stir well and switch off the gas.
6. Let it to cool. Then blend it in a blender or a food processor to a fine paste.
7. Transfer the contents into the same saucepan again and heat it if necessary.
8. At this stage, if required, you may add the remaining one cup of water to dilute the soup. Stir well and remove from flame.
9. Pour the content into soup bowls, add freshly ground pepper as per taste and garnish with chopped corriander leaves.
10. Serve hot.

Preparation time: 15-20 mins

Cooking time : 30-35 mins

Serves : 4

Note:

• You can also cook the carrots in a pressure cooker in which case it will take less time to cook.
• Addition of water to dilute the soup can be adjusted as per once requirement.