Neetu's Cooking Blog: gujrati cuisine

Showing posts with label gujrati cuisine. Show all posts

BAJRA METHI MUTHIA/ VADA

Bajra or pearl millet gives excellent benefits when had during winters. It keep the body warm and helps to fight the chill. Bajra roti or bhakri with jaggery and ghee makes a tasty snack.

Muthia are bite sized,ball shaped snacks. This recipe of muthia has bajra flour and methi leaves with some basic spices. The same muthia can be used to make bajra vada which has been shown through pics.

Bajra methi muthia or vada can be stored in an airtight container upto two weeks.

Recipe for Bajra methi muthia/ vada

Ingredients for Bajra methi muthia/ vada

1 cup bajra or pearl millet flour
2 tbsp besan or Bengal gram flour
2 tbsp atta or whole wheat flour
1 tbsp til or sesame
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 cup methi or fenugreek leaves (finely chopped)
Salt to taste
2 tbsp oil for the dough
Oil for deep frying

How to make

Take bajra flour, atta, besan, til, red chilli powder and salt in a mixing bowl. Mix well.

Add 2 tablespoon oil. Mix to form coarse texture.

Add methi leaves and mix again.

Add little water to form a stiff dough. Rest it for 10 minutes.

Divide the dough in small portions and shape them into balls.

Press gently between the palms before deep frying. Fry on medium heat till crisp.

Foe vadas take a portion of dough on your palm, shape it into a flat circle. Deep fry on medium heat till crisp.

Store in an air-tight container.

SUVA TIKKI / SHEPU VADI / DILL FRITTERS

Suva tikki or shepu vadi is a monsoon time snack to be enjoyed with a cup of evening tea, sitting by your window while it is raining outside.

Suva tikki is a delicious preparation made from suva or shepu or dill and multigrain flour mix. It can be served as a side dish as well as a snack.

Suva tikki is first steamed and then deep fried. Although it is ready to eat after steaming, deep frying gives a nice crisp texture to it. Deep frying also enhances its shelf life. They can be stored for a week outside the fridge.

It is necessary to completely cool the suva tikki logs before cutting them into pieces.

Recipe for Suva Tikki

Ingredients for Suva Tikki

1/3 cup jowar flour
1/3 cup bajra flour
1/3 cup wheat flour
1 cup gram flour
2 cups suva or shepu (finely chopped)
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp red chilli powder
½ tsp garam masala
A pinch of baking soda
2 tbsp oil
Salt to taste
1 cup lukewarm water
Oil for frying

How to make

In a mixing bowl put all four flours and mix well. Add suva, salt and dry spices to it.

Add oil and mix well. Knead dough using the lukewarm water. I required one cup of water. You can add a little more if required.

Let the dough rest for five minutes.

Pour 500ml of water in the lower vessel of the steamer. Grease the plates with oil.

Grease your hands with few drops of oil. Dive the dough in 6 to 7 portions. Shape them to form logs of equal diameter.

Place them on the steamer plate such that they don’t stick to each other. Here you can use an idli cooker or pressure cooker (without weight) for steaming.

Close the lid. Steam on medium high heat for 15 minutes.

Let the suva tikki logs cool down completely before cutting them into pieces.

Deep fry in hot oil till crispy. Serve with masala chai.

TUVAR LILVA SABZI/ GREEN TUVAR SABZI

Tuvar lilva or surti papdi lilva as it is called in gujrat is green pigeon peas. It looks similar to green peas but differs in taste.

Tuvar lilva sabzi is a winter special vegetable preparation. In Maharashtra amti is prepared with green tuvar. It is also boiled in salty water and enjoyed as an evening snack in winters.

Green tuvar or pigeon peas take more time to cook as compared to green peas. Generally it is pressure cooked. As I was preparing a small quantity I cooked it in a kadai or skillet.

Recipe for Tuvar lilva sabzi

Ingredients for Tuvar lilva sabzi

250 gms green tuvar or pigeon peas
1 medium sized potato (diced)
½ tsp ginger paste
½ tsp garlic paste
1 tsp green chillies paste
¼ tsp ajwain or caraway seeds
A pinch of asafoetida
½ tsp coriander powder
¼ tsp cumin powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste
coriander leaves for garnish

How to make

Heat some oil in a pan. Add ajwain, asafoetida and turmeric powder.

Tip in chopped onions. Sauté till onions become translucent.

Now add ginger, garlic and green chillies paste. Saute for two minutes.

Add potato, turmeric, coriander and cumin powder. Also add salt. Mix well.

Add in green tuvar or pigeon peas and salt.

Pour half cup of water. Cover with lid. Cook on low heat until done (8 to 10 mins).

Finish the preparation with a handful of chopped coriander leaves.

Serve with chapatti or phulka.

GUJRATI KADHI WITH KHICHDI

The fact that gujrati kadhi is always a part of gujrati thali prives its significance in gujrati cuisine.

Sindhi kadhi, Punjabi kadhi, south Indian kadhi are few different types of kadhis. Gujrati kadhi is unique because of its sweet and sour taste. The curd gives a nice tanginess and jaggery or sugar is added for sweetness.

Gujrati kadhi recipe is very simple to prepare. It is generally enjoyed with gujrati khichdi. The combination of flavourful kadhi with simple khichdi is a perfect balance of flavours.

Gujarati cuisine has quite a few variations of their khichdi like masala khichdi, vegetable khichdi.

Here I have a basic dhuli moong dal and chawal ki khichdi. Dhuli moong dal can be replaced with whole moong dal, it tastes equally good, also enhances the nutrional value of khichdi.

Recipe of Gujrati Kadhi with Khichdi

Ingredients for Gujrati Kadhi

1 cup yogurt (dahi )
2 tbsp gram flour ( besan )
½ inch ginger
3 green chillies
1 tbsp sugar
1 ½ cup water
Salt to taste

Ingredients for Tempering

2 whole dry red chillies( broken in 2 or 3 pieces)
¼ tsp mustard seeds
¼ tsp cumin seeds
¼ tsp asafetida
4 curry leaves
2 tbsp oil

How to make Kadhi

Make a paste for ginger and green chillies.

In a mixing bowl mix the curd, besan and ginger- chilli paste . Beat until the mixture is smooth and shiny without any lumps.

Add water and mix well.

Transfer the curd mixture in a pan. Put the pan on medium heat stirring continuously until it comes to a boil. Stirring at this stage is important as besan tends to sit down.

Simmer for five minutes. Add salt and sugar.

Heat oil in a small skillet for tempering.

Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, red chillies,, curry leaves and asafoetida.

When mustards seeds begin to crackle, remove from heat and pour it on the kadhi. Also remove the kadhi from heat.

Serve with piping hot khichdi or plain rice.

Ingredients for Khichdi

½ cup split green gram (without skin) or dhuli moong dal
½ cup rice
¼ tsp turmeric powder
1/8 tsp asafoetida
4 cloves
½ inch cinnamon
2 tsp ghee
1 ½ cups water
2 tsp clarified butter or ghee

How to make Khichdi

Soak dal and rice together for half an hour.

Heat ghee in a pressure cooker. Keep the heat at medium.

Add cloves and cinnamon stick to it.

As cloves and cinnamon releases its aroma add the asafoetida followed by the soaked dal and rice.

Add the turmeric powder and salt.

Also add water and pressure cook until done.

Enjoy with kadhi, plain curd or mango pickle.

KHAKHRA CHUTNEY/ SHENGDANA CHUTNEY/ ROASTED PEANUT GARLIC CHUTNEY

Shengdana chutney or popularly called as khakhra chutney is made from roasted peanuts and garlic. Khakhra are lightly toasted thin flat breads (rotis) made from whole wheat flour. The right way to enjoy khakhra is to smear some clarified butter (ghee) on them and generously sprinkle the peanut garlic chutney on them. It also tastes nice with simple dal khichdi or chapatti.

Peanut garlic chutney is a dry preparation and be stored for a longer period of time. It is an ideal food item to be carried on long journeys.

Traditionally, this chutney is made with a red variety of peanuts which are high in oil content. In olden days chutney used to be pounded in mortar and pestle. Regular peanuts also yield equally good results.