Summers means okra time. A vegetable that I really love. I prepare okra in several different ways. Often, I make a Punjabi style okra with sliced onions and it tastes marvellous. Similarly, I often make okra in this do pyaaza style – consisting of okra and onions. But this dish tastes vastly different from the…
Category: Main Dishes
Kothu Parotta (Minced Indian Flatbread)
This is a typically Thamizhnadu dish that is really tasty and healthy. Unlike the paranthas of North India which are hearty, South Indian parottas are crunchy and flaky. I love both types, but the South Indian ones do use a fair amount of all purpose flour (maida). I am therefore not able to touch these…
Uttar Pradesh Kadhi (Fritters In A Chickpea And Yogurt Base)
The Punjabi kadhi is very well known and forms the benchmark for all North Indian kadhis. But say that to someone from Uttar Pradesh (UP) and they will hotly dispute it. For there is a delicious kadhi from this state too. My sister-in-law’s mother (may her soul rest in peace) used to make the best…
Chembu Mor Kootan (Taro Root Curry)
Kerala and Tamizhnadu have a large number of yogurt based dishes that can loosely be called ‘kadhi’ in North Indian terms. Each one is tastier than the other. When I first turned vegan, I rued the fact that I could no more enjoy these wonderful dishes. Thanks to Dr. Rupa Shah, I learnt how to…
Laknawi Dal
As part of my experimentation with different Indian foods, I was keen to prepare some stuff from the Avadh region (that includes modern day Lucknow). The food in this region, as preferred by the rulers of Avadh (or Oudh) is mainly non-vegetarian. I was therefore delighted to discover this dal and went ahead to prepare…
Sabut Masoor Dal (Whole Pink Lentils)
Hari is an expert on dals, as he is on several other topics. So, one evening when we were deciding upon the dal for the next day, he suggested sabut masoor dal. I have had masoor dal (pink lentils) several times – it is one of my favourite dals. But the whole lentil (brown in…
Sarson Ka Saag (Mustard Greens Curry)
Sarson ka saag is a very famous dish from the North Indian state of Punjab. It is often paired with a flat bread made of corn. However, any other flat bread also goes well with this iconic dish. This dish is normally made in winter when mustard greens are plentifully available. Of course, like most…
Chana And Moong Chilka Dal (Bengal Gram And Broken Green Lentil Dal)
I am constantly amazed to see the number of lip-smacking dals in this country. They all look a little similar, but taste completely different. I had been much of a fan of dals till recently. But, I suppose, our food tastes evolve constantly over time. So it is with me. Since childhood, I have been…
Vazhakkai Podimas (Mashed Raw Banana)
I like podimas of any type. Podimas means mashed or grated. I have previously posted the recipes for sweet potato and potato podimas. This is a typically South Indian dish – though I am not sure which state it actually belongs to. I suspect it it Thamizhnadu. When I prepare podimas from sweet potato or…
Rasakalan (Mixed Vegetable Curry)
Rasakalan is a typically Palakkad dish. It is not rasam, kalan or mor kootan. For those not aware of these names, these are various wet dishes that are mixed with rice. Rasakalan seems to be related to mor kootan (yogurt based wet dish) but is also quite different and distinct. Broadly, it falls into the…
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