Haritha's Stuffed Brinjal Roast/ Vankaya Kaaram Koora

Today's post is a dish made with brinjals. A very popular dish  from Andhra. My friend Haritha, who has a YouTube channel in the name of "Haritha's Home and Kitchen" made this dish when we had a get together at my place. She is an amazing cook and you can visit her channel which has lots of cooking videos and authentic recipes. 

I love brinjals but you all might know by now that my husband doesn't like brinjal and so ones in a blue moon I will be making brinjal dishes. As my friend knows about this, she made the delicious roast just for me.

This is a simple dish with minimum ingredients. My mom prepares amazing Andhra dishes, the most famous one is gutti vankaya koora/ Stuffed brinjal curry. In this dish, you have to grind the masala and stuff it in brinjal and roast till done. Within minutes yummy brinjal roast will be ready. Please try this dish and let me know.

Ingredients:

• Brinjal- 7-8
• Oil- 2tbsp

Masala:

1. Grated Coconut- 1Cup
2. Cumin Seeds- 2tbsp
3. Red Chili Powder- 3tbsp
4. Garlic Cloves-4
5. Salt- as required

Method:

1. Cut the brinjal length wise keeping the stem intact. Immerse them in water for 5- 10 minutes. 
2. Grind the masala to a paste. Stuff this masala in brinjal. Repeat with all the brinjals till done.
3. Heat a deep bottomed vessel and pour oil, when it becomes hot, add the stuffed brinjals and mix well. Stir well till everything is mixed and the brinjals become soft and tender. Enjoy with hot rice.

Peanut Chikki/ Peanut Brittle/ Kadala Muttai

Chikki/ Peanut Brittle is a traditional Indian candy made with jaggery and peanuts. This one is loved by everyone in my family. My mom used to make this when we were kids but I never tried as I was not sure of the syrup consistency.

We buy this when we go shopping at Indian store, but nowadays we are not getting good quality ones and so I gathered courage and made this by asking my mom and watching some channels regarding the syrup consistency. It came out perfect. You can cut them into pieces by spreading them on a greased surface. This is a very healthy snack, rich in protein and iron.

Jaggery is an important ingredient for perfect chikkis. Also make sure the syrup reaches the right consistency by dropping a little bit in water and checking whether it turned into candy consistency. Act fast while rolling. Hope my friends will try this and please let me know how it turned.

Ingredients:

1. Peanuts- 2.5cups
2. Jaggery- 1cup
3. Water-1/4 Cups

Method:

1. Roast the Peanuts till nice aroma comes and till it starts to change golden in color. Keep this aside and ones it is cooled remove the skin by crushing gently. Separate the skin and keep the peanuts aside till the jaggery syrup is ready.
2. Heat a heavy bottomed pan and add the jaggery along with water. Let it dissolve on low heat.
3. Begin to boil and keep stirring until it thickens well. Check the consistency by dropping few drops into water. When it reaches the right consistency the jaggery syrup will harden immediately and it forms brittle.
4. If you are unable to get the syrup brittle then cook for few more minutes.
5. Turn off the stove and add the roasted peanuts, be quick and stir the peanuts well till everything gets well incorporated.
6. Grease your hands with ghee and roll them into balls. Ones it gets harder place it in an airtight container. and enjoy.

Hyderabadi Chicken haleem

Hyderabadi Haleem is an authentic and traditional Ramadan delicacy served during Iftar after breaking the fast. This dish has got all the nutritions that one requires after  fasting the whole day. Haleem is a delicacy, which you can never miss if you ever want a taste of Hyderabad food. the traditional haleem is a must try dish in one's life.  In recognition of its cultural significance and popularity, in 2010 it was granted Geographic indication status (GIS) by the Indian GIS Registry Office making it the first non vegetarian dish in India to receive the status.

Haleem is a stew composed of meat, different varieties of lentils, spices which is made into a thick.paste. Traditionally this haleem is cooked on a low flame for about 12 hours and two people are required to stir the haleem using a wooden paddle. It is made by adding loads of ghee to make it richer, but at home we can add as we want. In Hyderabad, Pista house is famous for haleem. When we were in Bangalore, we used to order haleem from Hyderabad Pista house and would get our share within a day. In Andhra, almost all the people who are fasting will make this dish and during one fasting time, I tasted this dish when my neighbors prepared and instantly fell in love with this dish. Every year one time during fasting, I would make this dish as my daughter and my husband love this.

I have posted one haleem dish before in my blog, But that only has broken wheat and chicken. Over the years I tried different versions and here I am today with the most authentic version, but I have added less ghee and also a less time consuming version.  Here I have blended everything using an electric hand blender, you can also use a hand masher. This is a dish which is packed with full of proteins and one of the best delicacies to be eaten during the month of Ramadan. With a dash of lemon juice, will bring out the flavors in this dish. Hope you will try this dish and please let me know.

 Ingredients:
For the Chicken:

1. Boneless Chicken- 1lb
2. Ginger garlic paste- 1 tbsp
3. Red chili powder- 1 tbsp
4. Cumin Powder- 1 tsp
5. Turmeric Powder- 1/2 tbsp
6. Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
7. Garam Masala Powder- 1 tbsp
8. Chopped Coriander Leaves- a bunch
9. Onions(sliced)- 1no
10. Lemon Juice- 1 tbsp
11. salt- as required

Pulses:

1. Broken Wheat- 2 Cups
2. Urad dal/ Black Gram - 2 tbsp
3. Chana Dal/ Split Chick peas- 2tbsp
4. Toor Dal/ Split Pigeon Peas- 2 tbsp
5. Moong Dal/ Yellow Split lentil- 2 tbsp
6. Water- 4 Cups
7. Salt- as required
8. For assembling:
9. Red Chili powder-1 tbsp
10. Garam Masala Powder- 1 tsp
11. Pepper powder- 1 tsp

For Frying:

1. Oil- 1 tbsp
2. Onions- 1/2 no
3. Lemon Juice- 1 tbsp

Garnish:

1. Coriander leaves

Method for preparing chicken:

• Put all the ingredients required for the chicken in a pressure cooker and cook on a low flame for almost an hour.

Method for pulses:

• Soak the pulses for 3-4 hours.
• Pressure cook all the ingredients under pulses and cook well for almost an hour on a low flame.

Method for assembling:

• Blend the cooked chicken well using a hand blender.
• Add this chicken mixture to the cooked pulses and blend well so that everything gets mixed thoroughly. Cook on a low flame. Add little water if required.
• Add the red chili powder, Garam masala powder, pepper powder and salt if required. Mix well. Switch off the flame after 15 minutes.
• Fry the onions to golden brown, keep it aside.
• Garnish the haleem using fried onions, lemon juice, coriander leaves and a table spoon of ghee. Enjoy hot and delicious haleem.

Andhra Style Stuffed Ivy Gourd Fry/ Gutti Dondakaya Vepudu

Stuffed Ivy gourd is one of my favorite dishes which my mom makes often. I love anything made out of ivy gourd. When in school, if any of my friends brought the stuffed ivy gourd, I used to trade them with my food and I enjoyed eating this stuffed version. I love to eat Andhra food a lot. My mom makes the best version. During school days, for lunch box along with rice, she used to send me varieties of dishes. She is an expert in Kerala cuisine but most of the traditional Andhra dishes, she used to learn and prepare for us. Feeling very nostalgic.

This is an easy dish which can be prepared within no time through the preparation part of slicing the ivy gourd is little time consuming, but worth the effort. Just roast and grind all the spices and stuff the paste in ivy gourd and fry them in little oil till soft and tender. Voila... a mouthwatering dish is ready to go with hot steaming rice.

This stir-fry has a nice crunchy outside and nutty flavor inside. Hope you all might like it. Try it out and let me know...
Ingredients:
Ivy Gourd- 10- 15nos
Red Chilis- 3 nos
Sesame Seeds- 2 tbsp
Peanuts- 1/4 Cup
Urad Dal- 1 tbsp
Coriander Seeds- 1 tbsp
Oil- 2 tbsp
Mustard Seeds-1 tbsp
Cumin Seeds-1 tsp
Method:
Heat 1 tbsp of oil, roast the red chilis, urad dal, peanuts, coriander seeds and urad dal. When roasted well switch off the flame and let it cool. Grind to a fine paste along with required amount of salt and water.
Chop the ends of the ivy gourd and slit lengthwise. Stuff the above made paste in the ivy guard and keep this aside.
Heat the remaining oil in a wok, splutter the mustard and cumin seeds.
Add the stuffed ivy gourd, stir for 5 minutes on a medium flame. Close with a lid and let this cook for about 10- 15 minutes on a slow flame, stirring in between.
Once when they turn soft and cooked, switch off the flame and serve along with hot steamed rice.

Eggs in Tamarind Gravy/ Kodiguddu Pulusu

As I grew up in Andhra Pradesh, I like all the dishes. Among all the curries which my mom makes, one of my most favorite is this egg curry, which is called as “pulusu”.

Pulusu in Telugu means sour curry. Tamarind is used to get the sourness for the gravy. To balance the sourness, we add jaggery/sugar. We can make this tamarind gravy adding different vegetables.

In this, the boiled eggs are cooked in onions and tamarind gravy, which is then tempered with mustard seeds and curry leaves. Different varieties of egg curries are made, but this version goes well with steaming hot rice as well as roti. This can be made easily on a lazy day without much hustle.

I shallow fried the boiled eggs, before adding in the gravy as I like the crisp outer cover. You can add the boiled eggs directly without frying. Try this out and let me know.

Ingredients:

1. Eggs- 4- 5 nos
2. Onions (chopped)- 2 nos
3. Green Chillies (slit)- 2 nos
4. Red Chilli powder- 2 tbsp
5. Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
6. Turmeric Powder- 1 tsp
7. Cumin powder- 1 tsp
8. Oil- 1 tbsp
9. Mustard Seeds- 1 tsp
10. Garlic Pods- 5- 6 nos
11. Curry Leaves- few
12. Salt- as required
13. Tamarind- a lemon size ball
14. Jaggery- 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Soak the tamarind in a cup of warm water and extract the juice. Keep this aside.
2. Boil the eggs till done and discard the shell. Heat oil in a pan and shallow fry the hard boiled eggs for about 7- 10 minutes, stirring in between. When it is done, remove the fried eggs on a plate.
3. In the same oil splutter mustard seeds along with garlic pods and curry leaves.
4. Saute the chopped onions until translucent. Add the green chilies and all the spice powders along with salt, stir till the raw smell disappears.
5. In this add tamarind juice and 2 cups of water, bring to a boil. Add jaggery to balance the tanginess of the tamarind. Let this simmer for 5 min. Drop the shallow fried eggs in the gravy and let this cook for about 10 min. When u get the required gravy consistency switch off the stove and serve with steaming hot rice and enjoy.

Andhra Mango Pickle/ Avakaya

Avakaya/ Mango pickle is an authentic pickle exclusively prepared in Andhra. Those who grew up in Andhra will know the specialty of this pickle. I love this a lot. My mom mixes steaming hot rice along with dal, a dollop of ghee and this pickle and the taste was mind blowing, which I won’t forget in my life. A magical combination they are.

In almost all the houses in Andhra, they used to make this pickle at home. My friends always used to bring lunch which was pickle  mixed rice i.e “avakaya annam”.

My mom used to prepare almost all the Kerala pickles, but this avakaya is the one which she doesn’t know the exact proportions. “Priya” pickles are most famous pickles, and they used to have the “mango avakaya”, which my dad used to bring regularly. Our favorite past time in the afternoons, when my mom used to take a nap, is to take a mango piece from the pickle jar, wash it and enjoy it. This used to happen regularly and my mom used to wonder, how come a big jar of avakaya got over within a few days of purchase.. :) (this is a secret till now…)

I used to think that preparing this pickle is a big and tiring process until I stumbled upon the wonderful blogger Lubna’s blog

If we have the right proportions then making this pickle is not a difficult task. This pickle is made in large portions, because of its good shelf life and that too without refrigeration. During the mango season, the Andhra markets are flooded with varieties of raw and ripe mangoes. They used to sell raw cut mangoes for pickling. The mangoes used for avakaya is cut along with the inside shell, which is a difficult process.  If the shell is not intact then the piece should be discarded, as they turn soggy.

Here in the US, I got raw cut mangoes in the frozen section, but I was not sure of how they will turn out after preparing this pickle. But to my surprise, they turned out just like the store bought ones. Just thaw them till done and wipe with a clean tissue and start the pickling process. I was excited and happy by the outcome. I am sure that you all will love this. Just try this out.

Adapted from Kitchenflavours:

Ingredients:

1. Mango pieces- 3 cups
2. Mustard seeds Powder- ½ Cup
3. Fenugreek powder- 1 tbsp
4. Red Chilli powder- 1 Cup
5. Salt- as required
6. Oil- 2 Cups
7. Garlic Cloves- 2 Cups

Method:

1. Take mango pieces in a bowl, add the mustard seeds powder, fenugreek powder, red chili powder, garlic cloves, and oil.
2. Mix well along with salt. Combine everything and keep this in an airtight glass jar.
3. After 3 days open the jar and using a clean ladle, give it a nice stir. Keep it closed.
4. Repeat the process for every 2- 3 days till 10- 15 days.
5. Enjoy the mango pickle along with hot steamed rice and a dollop of ghee.

Shahi Tukda- Ramadan Special

Eid Mubarak to all…..

Every eid I will be trying out different dishes and so for this time, I made a delicious dessert which will be loved by all.

Eid is a time where we will be celebrating with family and friends. In the morning we will do our prayers, exchange eid greetings, then after breakfast we will be busy with lunch preparations. Who doesn’t love to have an amazing dessert after a heavy lunch. In the evening will go out to meet  friends and family.

Shahi tukda is a sweet made of bread, milk, sugar, saffron and garnished with nuts. I didn’t had saffron. It is a most famous dessert in Hyderabadi weddings. As I grew up in Andhra, when I was a child, I used to love to visit weddings especially for this dessert. It is a must have dessert for weddings in Hyderabad.

This is similar to that of Double ka Meeta, another dessert. The ingredients are same only the preparation varies.

My husband and my kid also love this and so I made it for Ramadan. We can also use condensed milk, but here I reduced milk and added.

The aroma of the fried bread pieces soaking in the sugar syrup is to die for… This is so easy to make and with very less ingredients, within minutes we will be having a perfect royal dessert.

Try this out and let me know….

Ingredients:

1. Bread slices- 10 nos
2. Sugar- ½ Cup
3. Water- ¾ cup
4. Milk- 1 Cup
5. Cardamom Powder- 1 tsp
6. Nuts- ¼ Cup
7. Ghee- 2 tbsp

Method:

1. Dry the bread slices , cut the edges and also diagonally. Shallow fry the diagonal bread pieces in ghee to golden brown color and keep this aside.
2. Arrange these fried bread slices in a rectangular pan. Heat sugar along with water and cardamom powder. Let this boil for about 10- 15 minutes.
3. Pour the sugar syrup on the arranged bread slices evenly. Heat milk in a bowl and reduce it on a slow flame till it becomes ½ of the original amount.
4. Pour this on top of the syrup covered bread slices. Garnish with crushed nuts and dive into the amazing dessert.

Kodi guddu pulusu / Egg in tangy tamarind gravy

The ideal way to start a day is with a healthy breakfast. Egg is a very common ingredient in the breakfast menu. Today I am going to introduce an authentic andhra gravy which can be served with rice and chapatis alike.

Boiled eggs in tamarind gravy is my all time favorite curry along with steaming rice. Since I spent most of my life in Andhra, I love the authentic andhra flavors. Pulusu in andhra means spicy tamarind gravy. With less ingredients and within no time we can prepare an amazing side dish for rice.

Boiled eggs fried in oil

This is a classic dish in which boiled eggs are cooked in yummy tamarind sauce and other spices. This dish is a package full of flavors. To balance the tanginess by adding little sugar or jaggery. Different varieties of pulusu can be made using bitter gourd, ladies finger, and so on.

Ingredients:

1. Egg- 3 nos
2. Oil- 2 tbsp
3. Onions (chopped)- 2 nos
4. Tomato (chopped)- 1no
5. Mustard seeds- 1 tsp
6. Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
7. Curry leaves- few
8. Green chillies (slitted)- 2 nos
9. Red chilli powder- 2 tsp
10. Coriander powder- 2 tsp
11. Turmeric powder- 1 tsp
12. Tamarind- Lemon sized ball
13. Water- 2 cups

Method:

1. Soak tamarind in warm water.
2. Boil the eggs and remove the shell. Using knife make slits in the boiled eggs and keep it aside.
3. Heat oil in a kadai and splutter mustard and cumin seeds. Add chopped onions, green chillies and curry leaves. Fry till the onions turn golden brown in colour. Add chopped tomatoes.
4. In this add the red chilli powder, coriander powder and turmeric powder and stir till the raw smell disappears.
5. Meanwhile fry boiled eggs in little oil for some time and keep it aside.
6. Add the tamarind water and salt to the above mixture and let it boil for some time.
7. In this add the fried eggs and let it boil for another minute and switch off the flame.
8. Enjoy tangy yummy gravy along with hot steaming rice.