Sinful Curry

Anyone reading or following this website, by now would have realized, how important family and friends are to me. And yes, I have plenty of them. There is no denying that sitting in pajamas all day, writing about feelings, activities in the kitchen, random thoughts and ramblings of everyday life, all out and into the Internet, flooded with mostly strangers, is uncanny for a person who claims to have so many friends and family. But, when caught up in the travesty of life, where for the most bizarre reasons I’ve chosen to move thousands of miles away from home, this is where I manage to find at least one lending ear at  the oddest of hours. It may  be of a friend or of a family or of a total stranger. It doesn’t matter. Every time I so long to talk to someone, nothing in particular, just something I have to say at the moment,  and it is too late to call a friend or too early to call home, there is someone always waiting on me bright eyed and bushy tailed – The Internet. And thus I w...

  These spicy lauki parathas and soft sooji parathas, unlike the usual parathas are pretty light on the tummy. They don’t weigh you down like the other parathas do. I ate two each of them at Shilpa’s and still had lots of room for all the other goodies she had made. Lauki Parathas Ingredients 2 cups grated lauki 3/4 cup whole wheat flour 1/2 tsp chili powder 2-3 tbsp lemon juice 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp coriander powder salt to taste Directions Mix all ingredients and knead it into a soft dough without adding water. Divide the dough into 6 equal parts Pat the stuffed balls with dry flour to prevent them from sticking while rolling out. Roll out the dough into circles of desired thickness(I like mine very thin). Heat a skillet on high. Place the paratha over the skillet and let it cook on both sides. Apply ghee or oil and take off the flame when cooked thoroughly on both sides. Serve hot with, curd, pickles or butter. Cool completely in the open if you want to box them for later Sooji Par...

  These spicy lauki parathas and soft sooji parathas, unlike the usual parathas are pretty light on the tummy. They don’t weigh you down like the other parathas do. I ate two each of them at Shilpa’s and still had lots of room for all the other goodies she had made. Lauki Parathas Ingredients 2 cups grated lauki 3/4 cup whole wheat flour 1/2 tsp chili powder 2-3 tbsp lemon juice 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp coriander powder salt to taste Directions Mix all ingredients and knead it into a soft dough without adding water. Divide the dough into 6 equal parts Pat the stuffed balls with dry flour to prevent them from sticking while rolling out. Roll out the dough into circles of desired thickness(I like mine very thin). Heat a skillet on high. Place the paratha over the skillet and let it cook on both sides. Apply ghee or oil and take off the flame when cooked thoroughly on both sides. Serve hot with, curd, pickles or butter. Cool completely in the open if you want to box them for later Sooji Parathas...

I’m back. 2 months of pure fun, being pampered and spoilt by family and friends over in a blink of an eye. Oh well I guess, such is life. Everything comes with an end. I just need to learn to treasure the moments and hold on to the lingering memories. But before I get all sappy and bore you with the – how lost and homesick I feel right now , I have a few more delightful recipes and pictures of the food back home that I’d been overfed with in the last couple of months. BitterGourd–Carrot-Mango pickle / Pavakka Carrot Manga Achaar This is my Mom’s all famous  mixed pickle recipe that comes together fairly quickly and one of my favorites. Like all mothers do my Mom eyeballs all her ingredients and so the proportions tastes… [ Read More]         Chiratta Puttu and Kadala Curry (Black Channa Masala) Puttu and Kadala or Puttu with banana and sugar is one of the most popular Kerala breakfasts. I hated it as a child. I found it insipid, dry and boring then and wondered how my folks ate it...

This delightfully tasty dessert is perfect to cool you off on a hot summer’s day. If you have really over ripe mangoes that are not going look too great to serve because they are oozing from all sides, it is a good idea to make a simple Aamras out of them. There are lots of variations in making this. Some add nuts, others add milk and saffron, and some use jaggery instead of sugar. How you like to make it depends on what you are in a mood for. Cause each addition adds a distinct flavor to the dessert. Ingredients 2 cups mango pulp 1/2 cup milk (optional) 2 – 3 tbsp or to taste jaggery pinch of saffron (optional) 2 tsp chopped almonds or cashew nuts 1/2 tsp cardamom powder (reduce the quantity if you aren’t adding milk) Directions Blend all the ingredients. Serve cold as dessert or with puris and rotis

Puttu and Kadala or Puttu with banana and sugar is one of the most popular Kerala breakfasts. I hated it as a child. I found it insipid, dry and boring then and wondered how my folks ate it with such relish every other day. Today, the subtle aroma of Puttu steaming in the wee hours at my sister Sophie’s place gets me so hungry that I doubt if the soul that lives in me now, is the same one that dwelt in me as a child. If it is, I have no idea what brought about this 180 degree change. Though traditionally it is made with rice flour, my health freak sister, Sony, makes it with Millet (raagi) and sometimes Rava(semolina) too. And I must say it tastes great as well. If you don’t have the customary device called Puttu Kudam to make this, don’t fret.  You can use any possible steaming device, like even an idli pan to make it. No biggie. At Sophie’s, her help, Thangamma, smoothened out a coconut shell, drilled a hole into one of the three indentations or eyes (as they are called) and voila  ...

  This is my Mom’s all famous  mixed pickle recipe. It comes together fairly quickly and is one of my favorites. Like all mothers do, my Mom too eyeballs all her ingredients while cooking. So the proportions I’ve mentioned might not be as accurate. You may have to alter  them according to your tastes. Ingredients 1 cup cut julienne style bitter melon ½ cup cut julienne style carrot ½ cup cut julienne style raw peeled mango 2 tsp cut julienne style garlic 2 tsp cut julienne style green chilies  1 tbsp salt (or to taste)  big pinch of asafoetida  ½  tsp roasted cumin powder (dry roast cumin seeds and powder them)   ½  tsp black mustard seeds ½ tsp roasted fenugreek powder (dry roast fenugreek seeds and powder them) 2 –3 tbsp sesame or refined vegetable oil 2 sprigs of curry leaves 1/4 cup natural vinegar Directions Heat oil in a pan, sauté melons, carrots and mango, one at a time, for a few minutes each until they are just tender. Make sure not to cook them. Drain ...

  This is my Mom’s all famous  mixed pickle recipe. It comes together fairly quickly and is one of my favorites. Like all mothers do, my Mom too eyeballs all her ingredients while cooking. So the proportions I’ve mentioned might not be as accurate. You may have to alter  them according to your tastes. Ingredients 1 cup cut julienne style bitter melon ½ cup cut julienne style carrot ½ cup cut julienne style raw peeled mango 2 tsp cut julienne style garlic 2 tsp cut julienne style green chilies  1 tbsp salt (or to taste)  big pinch of asafoetida  ½  tsp roasted cumin powder (dry roast cumin seeds and powder them)   ½  tsp black mustard seeds ½ tsp roasted fenugreek powder (dry roast fenugreek seeds and powder them) 2 –3 tbsp sesame or refined vegetable oil 2 sprigs of curry leaves 1/4 cup natural vinegar Directions Heat oil in a pan, sauté melons, carrots and mango, one at a time, for a few minutes each until they are just tender. Make sure not to cook them. Drain them out of the oil and...