Coconut dal is rich, creamy, and takes minutes to make – it’s my go-to dal on days when I want something filling and comforting without the fuss.​ It’s essentially a Pour-and-Cook Recipe that calls for a handful of ingredients. This is what I make when I don’t have time to prep ingredients or when I have nothing planned for dinner. It has saved us from ordering takeout on many occasions (to my fast-food lovin’ husband’s dismay)....

Everyone loves potatoes, right? Is it possible to love them even more? Yes! Just smother them in a creamy spiced cashew tomato sauce! This recipe for dum aloo is absolutely delicious, and thanks to the instant pot, it’s easy to make too. My dum aloo recipe is easy enough to make on a weeknight and fancy enough to serve company or on a special occasion. It’s naturally vegetarian and gluten-free – perfect for nearly any diet....

Irupuli kuzhambu is a traditional heirloom gravy made using native veggies. It is cooked in tamarind gravy and also sour curd is added in the last. Since 2 sour things are involved, we call it iru puli kuzhambu. Traditionally Drumstick, ladies finger, white pumpkin, raw banana, avarakkai and brinjals are added to this kuzhambu. You can add anything as per your availability. I used white pumpkin ( ash gourd) and drumstick for this kuzhambu....

Maavu Javarisi 1 cup Green chilli 5 Rock Salt 1tsp Thick butter milk 1/2 cup Lemon juice from one big lemon Asafoetida 2 pinches Water 5 cups Wash and Soak javarisi | sago in 2 cups of water for 4 hours. Meanwhile grind the salt and green chilli together into a fine paste. After 4 hours when the javarisi got soaked add 3 cups of water to this. In a pressure cooker or a heavy bottomed vessel, add the soaked javarisi along with water....

Black rice | kavuni arisi | karuppu arisi 1/4 cup Milk 3 cups Water 3/4 cup Ghee 1 tsp Cashew nuts few Sugar 1/2 cup Method: Wash and soak the rice in 3/4 cup of water for 7 hours or overnight. After 7 hours keep the water aside and grind the rice coarsely. Add little water while grinding. In a heavy bottomed pan or a pressure cooker, add 3 cups of milk and the ground rice paste....

The homemade lemon syrup is a perfect keeper recipe which I learned from my athai many years back. My grandmother used to make this during summers and keep this inside the refrigerator. Whenever guests come, it is easy for us to serve this by just mixing it with water. Even my perimma, my mom’s elder sister makes this and we used to enjoy this daily during our summer vacation. This is a very simple syrup made using sugar, ginger, and fresh lemon extract....

While I was sharing lockdown recipe ideas to my friends, living abroad, I thought I will make a blog post on this which will benefit most of the Indians. Most of the time, as Indian groceries and veggies are available, we never explore the local produce. After moving to Hongkong, I started trying the local vegetables here. Coming to the lockdown recipe ideas, many of them told they are running out of Toor dal....

Malfatti – rustically delicious! I love being proven wrong when it comes to food. As I dubiously fished the totally unimpressive-looking, slippery dumplings from the poaching liquid and plonked them in tomato sauce to pop into the oven, I was mentally preparing for what I could do to save the dish if it came out as bland as I was expecting. Bury in cheese and stick it back in the oven, I thought to myself....

Maida | all purpose flour 3/4 cup Besan | kadalaimaavu 1/4 cup Sooji | rava 1 tblsp Oil 2 tblsp + for deep frying Ajwain | omam 1 tsp Black pepper 1 tsp Salt as needed Video of how to make Mathri In a wide bowl sieve the maida and besan to get even mixing. Add in the sooji, ajwain and salt. Using a mortar and pestle pulse the pepper finely and add it to the flour....

There’s a big difference between South Indian garam masala and North Indian garam masala. Grinding your own whole spices makes a world of difference when it comes to cooking ethnic foods. This meat masala recipe is perfect for beef recipes. You can also use it with chicken, pork, lamb, and goat. “Meat masala” is also sometimes called “garam masala.” You should know that there is a HUGE difference between North Indian and South Indian garam masala....

Though I have seen modak moulds in shops, I never bought one for myself. Somehow I am comfortable making modakams in my hands, so never attempted to buy them. Also, my experience with the sweet somas or karanji mould is not so good and so I didn’t buy this modak mould too. When I got it for Raji too I never got one for me. But when my Maharashtrian friends were telling me about this mould a lot and also I got a request from a reader to post the procedure of how to make modak using mould, I thought I will post this recipe....

School holidays are over and packing lunch with interesting lunch items is challenging for all mothers. And if you have 2 kids, it is even more complicated !! This bhendi rice | okra pulao is an interesting lunch box recipe I recently learned from my friend who visited here last month. I made little changes to the recipe to suit my kid’s taste, and the bhindi pulao is a super-hit recipe....

This paneer recipe takes no time at all as long as you’ve got some pre-made onion masala handy! I tell ya, that stuff is magic sauce. You can do so many things with it! And this paneer onion masala stir-fry has to be on your list of things to make! An Indian Onion Masala Recipe: This dry paneer dish is part of my Onion Masala series where I share recipes that call for exact amounts of onion masala, which you can make in bulk in advance....

For the outer cover All purpose flour | Maida 1 cup Sooji|rava 1 tblsp Oil 3 tblsp Salt to taste Ajwain | omam 1/4 tsp For the filling Potato 3 medium size Red chili powder 1/2 tsp Coriander seeds 1/4 tsp Jeera powder 1/4 tsp Amchoor powder 1/4 tsp Ajwain 1/4 tsp cumin seeds a pinch Salt to taste Garam masala 2 pinches Oil 2 tsp Oil to deep fry First let’s make the dough as it needs to rest for an hour....

For hotel sambar Toor dal 1/2 cup minus 2 tblsp Tamarind a small goose berry size Sambar powder 3 tsp Jeera powder 1/2 tsp Small onions | Shallots 20 Garlic 1 pod Tomato 1 Carrot 1/2 Capsicum 1/2 Oil 2 tsp Mustard seeds 1/4 tsp Asafoetida 2 pinches Red chili 2 Salt as needed Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp Curry leaves few Ghee 1/2 tsp For vada Urad dal 1 cup Green chili 2 Salt to taste Oil for deep frying Other ingredients Hot water to soak vadas Onion 1 (finely chopped) Coriander leaves few First soak the urad dal for vada and let it soak for an hour....

Seppankizhangu | arbi or colocasia in English is one of the rare vegetables I cook in my kitchen. Though I like it, others in the family don’t prefer this much. So I cook this rarely. My mom makes it very yum and it is one of my most favorite ones during my childhood days. Or neighbour aunty used to make this version of seppankizhangu roast and as kids, we used to love this a lot....

Usually, for bhel puri we add sweet chutney and green chutney, and some people add red chili garlic chutney too. For this sukha bhel, we are adding a homemade dry green chutney with easily available ingredients. As for Bhel puri, we add puffed rice, sev, onion, tomato, papdis, for Sukha bhel also all these ingredients are added. This is one of the popular street foods of Mumbai. Mumbai, the major metropolitan city in India is very popular for its street food....

Find the recipe on page 251 of Dinner. I’m not just doing this to torture you, I promise. This page exists to display the how-to video for this recipe which I exclusively created for my debut cookbook, Dinner. Every recipe in the cookbook has a tutorial video. To watch it, you simply scan the QR code with your phone or tablet and it will take you straight to the recipe video like the one shown above!...

Thai Beef Salad I’m probably completely biased, but I think that Asian salads are the best in the world. I love them because they are interesting and the dressings are so good. The chances of me ordering a salad as a dish (not a side) at any restaurant other than an Asian one is almost zero. However, at Asian restaurants, there is a good prospect of it happening!! My favourite part is the zingy, fresh, strong flavoured dressings used in Asian salads....

When I came across this recipe while flipping through her cookbook, I knew I had to try it – after all, it’s no secret that I love Paleo Thai food. These twice baked sweet potatoes are flavorful without being spicy. Like all of the recipes in Michelle’s book, these sweet potatoes are family-friendly. Here’s a sneak peak at what else you’ll find in the Cavegirl Cuisine Cookbook: Appetizers & Sides: shrimp guac-tail, bacon jam meatballs, loaded fauxtato soup Main Meals: tangerine chicken, pork tenderloin with sweet cherry sauce, honey-lime salmon Treats: melonsicles, almond bark of joy, trail mix cookies Kid Favs: fish sticks, chicken and waffles, cinnamon pecan crunch cereal...