Bharille Bangde (Stuffed Mackerel)

I will be without net connection for a few weeks now. I apologize for being lazy in posting on this blog! I am shifting out of bangalore hence the gap. Will be back after a while.. till then enjoy my fav dish

My Fav fav fav dish. Yummy and very filling. Generally it’s one whole mackerel per person

when I made it, my hands were full with fish and other pastes used. hence i could not take snaps. After i finished, all were so hungry that the mackerels were finished. Well after all it was served with steaming rice and prawn curry :p

Ingredients:
1/2 to 3/4th vaati freshly grated coconut
1 medium onion chopped/sliced
1 and 1/2 tbl spn coriander seeds
1 tea spn cumin seeds
2 green chillies
small piece of ginger
3-4 flakes garlic
a small round of tamarind
1/2 vaati rava
4 mackerels (cleaned)
salt to taste

For frying:
1/2 tea spn turmeric powder
1 tea spn chilli powder
piece of thread (sutt)
oil for shallow frying

Method:

Clean the mackerels, keeping the tail. (Remove the head and fins. )

Slit the mackerels in the middle keeping one side closed, the bone (skeleton) should be visible.
apply salt and keep aside.

Grind together - coconut, onion, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, little turmeric powder, tamarind, green chilies, ginger, garlic and salt to a coarse paste with little water. The paste should remain thick hence don’t add too much water. keep the paste aside. (Adjust spices to taste)

Divide the thread into 4 parts - each part should be long enough to be tied around the stuffed mackerel.
Mix rava, turmeric and chilli powder together.

Heat oil on a tava.

Divide the stuffing paste into 4 parts/rounds. Take a mackerel and stuff it with the paste.
It will look something like this.

Tie the thread around the mackerel to avoid the paste from coming out during frying. Roll this stuffed mackerel in the rava.

Serve along with fish curry - rice and lemon wedges.

Instructions: You can remove the thread just before serving or instruct to be careful about the thread when eating.

* All photos and links are from Google Search. Please let me know in case of any issues with the same.

 

Tikhte

This is a chutney type dish. It’s basically a replacement for dals/veg curries served with rice.
Easy to make and yummy to taste

This is a spicy dish hence the word ‘tikh‘ in the name. ‘tikh‘ means spicy in konkani. You can easily guess that based on the chillies added.

It’s the tephal that gives this dish a real nice aroma and of course a different taste!

Ingredients:
1 vaati freshly grated coconut
1/2-3/4 tea spn chilli powder or around 2-3 red chillies
pinch of turmeric powder
small round of tamarind
4-5 fresh tephal (Sichuan pepper)
salt to taste

Method:
Grind coconut, chillies, turmeric and tamarind to a thick fine paste. Adjust chillies as per taste.

Remove in a vessel. Add little water and cook for 2-3 mins.
Add salt to taste and tephal. Cook for 3-4 mins.

Serve with hot steamed rice and vegetable dish.

Tastes yummy especially if you like chutney’s like I do!

 

Solkadi ( Coconut Milk - Kokum Curry)

Finally, my fav post is here Sadly, I dont’ have a picture of the dish! But ‘googling’ for solkadi will get you the pic

Kokum forms the main part of this kadhi. You can find it in any konkani store.

Here is how I make Solkadi:
Ingredients:
2 cups (vaati) freshly grated coconut
2-3 green chillies
around 2 cups drinking water
4-5 pieces of kokum
salt to taste

Method:
In a bowl, add little water, kokum and some salt.

In a mixie jar, add freshly grated coconut and green chillies. Add 1/2 vaati water and grind for around 30 secs. Take a rounds of the ground mix and using a stainer, stain the juice into the bowl.
Repeat till the juice is extracted, and the mix is dried out. Grind again with another 3/4 - 1 vaati of water for around 30-45 secs. The ground mix will become thin. Strain using the procedure described above.

Solkadi is ready
Add salt to taste to the kadi - taste and then add, as adding more salt will spoil the dish!

Garnish with finely chopped coriander.
Optionally add 2-3 flakes of garlic, finely chopped or pounded - this tastes real yum!

Adjust green chillies as per taste.

Shorcut Solkadi : Use 1 vaati ready made coconut diluted with little water. Add in slitted green chillies, kokum and salt to taste

Here’s a post on Solkadi on Nupur’s One Hot Stove.

 

Kanyachi Bhakri (Onion Bhakri)

Well I am back to blogging, slowly though.

Started my day today with a kanyachi bhakri, which is one of my favorite sunday breakfast/brunch dish.
Kaano means onion in konkani. Bhakri is a kind of roti prepared wholly with hand. It’s not rolled like a chapati, but is placed and layered on the tawa with hand.

Ingredients:
1 medium onion (kaano)
1 vaati besan (indian measurement cup )
1/2 vaati rawa
2 green chillies or 1 tea spn chilli powder
few sprigs of coriander leaves or 1/2 tea spn coriander powder
1/4 tea spn turmeric powder
4 table spn freshly grated coconut (optional)
oil for shallow frying
salt to taste

Method:
Chop onions, coriander and green chillies finely.
Mix together in a bowl. Add the besan, rawa, spice powders and salt to taste. Mix well WITHOUT adding water. Adjust spices to taste.
I didn’t add coconut to this, but my mom does and it taste absolutely awesome

Now add approx 1/2 cup of water to this and form a coarse & sticky batter. Do not make this mixture very watery as we need to place this batter on the tawa by hand.

Take a non-stick tawa and put a tea spoon of oil on it. Keep on low flame. Take a big round of the batter, place it at the center of the tawa.
Dip your fingers in water and lightly pat the batter spreading it on the tawa like a chapati. Keep patting lightly, till the batter spreads on the tawa.

Now place a tawa cover or plate on it, so that the bhakri cooks on the steam for a few mins. Turn around once and cook well till you see brown spots on both side of the bhakri.

Serve with tomato sauce and garam garam chai

Enjoy at breakfast, brunch or evening snack

 

Shevyancho Saano (Shevai sheera)

Ending this month on a sweet note with my fav breakfast dish. Yes I have a sweet tooth.
I will be on a blogging hiatus for a few months. Till then enjoy the recipes here…

Ingredients:
1 cup Sevai/Shevai/Shevyo
3-4 tbl spn freshly grated coconut
3-4 elaichi
1/3 cup sugar ( as per taste)
1 cup water (approx)
1 tea spn ghee
salt to taste

Method:
Crush elaichi pods to powder. Keep the water for boiling.

Heat ghee in a non-stick pan. Fry the Shevai till it’s light brown.
Add hot water to it. Keep on medium heat.

Add the sugar and salt to taste, stir well.
When the shevai is cooked and the water has reduced, add the coconut and elaichi powder. Mix well. Remove from heat.
Cover and keep for 5 mins before serving.

Serve as snack in the evening or for breakfast

 

Caramel Egg Pudding

Served and eaten by me

Yummy aint’ it Made it yesterday.

This how my mom makes the egg-bread pudding . It’s so famous in my family that for any in-home party they want it to be present! No matter how many other dessert dishes may be there!!

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 bread slice
250 ml milk (approx)
8 tbl spn sugar (vary as per taste)
1 tea spn vanilla essence

Serves : 3-4
Method:

Boil and cool milk.
Make small pieces of the bread and soak in the milk. Also add 6 spoons of sugar.
Crush the mixture with hands till no bread lumps remain. Soak for 10-15 mins.

Beat the eggs finely and add to the milk-bread mix. Also add in Vanilla essence.Beat the mix properly.

This pudding is cooked on steam, hence when selecting a final container choose a round steel one, which will fit in the cooker and can be easily removed.
Heat a steel flat-bottom vessel, add 1 to 1 1/2 tbl spn sugar. The sugar melts and turns into light brown liquid - caramel. Remove from heat.
Using a pair of tongs, spread the caramel at the base of the vessel. Allow to cool for 10-15 mins.

Now pour in the pudding mix(egg-bread-milk) into this vessel. Cover with a plate.
Use a pressure cooker, with enough water in it. Place the vessel in the cooker and steam on medium heat for around 20 mins. Do not use the whistle.

Allow it to cool down. Test if the pudding has cooked properly - using your finger gently touch the pudding, it should not stick to the finger.
If it’s not done, steam for few more mins.

Use a knife gently along the circumference of the pudding, to separate it from the vessel at the sides. Place a plate on top of the vessel and turn around, so that the pudding is on the plate. This is to be done only once the pudding has cooled.

Refrigerate for an hour. Serve chilled for dessert

Here’s how Pooja’s makes the Pudding. 

Tip: You can optionally put pieces of dry fruits on the caramel before pouring the pudding mix for more tastier version.

 

BRB

Hi.. came back from Goa one week back

Slowly getting back into the grind after 2 weeks of vacationing.. pics and posts coming soon

And yes.. Happy New Year!!!

 

Prawn Curry in the Microwave :-)

Thanks to all for your comments on my mobile. I didnt’ find it back but my number is now back with me. I hadn’t realised how close I was to the mobile - Mobile is a personal friend/companion nowadays! I lost tons of memories with a less than 6 months old mobile

Anyways.. i’m back.. well not exactly to blogging, but em on a 2 weeks vacation to Goa Yes.. you read it right 2 weeks Anyone J ?

This is my last post 2007 and an entry to Srivallis’ Microwave cooking event MEC: Gravies. This dish just came up..
Imagine you run out of Gas (Cooking walah ofcourse!) and you want to prepare humman. This is a nice prawn curry to make when you wish to eat prawns

Ingredients:
12-14 cleaned prawns
1 medium onion
1 small tomato
3-4 garlic pods
1/4 - 1/2 tea spn turmeric powder
1/2 - 1 tea spn chilli powder
1 cup coconut milk
salt to taste
1 tea spn oil
green coriander for garnishing

Method:
Chop garlic, onion and tomato finely.

I cooked this dish on high power (100%). Adjust power as per your microwave.

Heat the microwave safe glass bowl for 30 sec.
Add oil in it and heat for another 40 sec.

Now add in garlic and onions. Spread properly and heat for 1 min.
Add in the tomato,turmeric, chilli and salt, and heat for 40 secs.
Add the prawns and keep for 30 secs.

Add a little water to the coconut milk if it’s thick. Add this to the sauteed prawns. Microwave for 5-7 mins or till it boils

Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve with hot steamed rice

Wishing you all a Very Very Happy New Year in advance !

 

Lost my Mobile

I lost my mobile in Office today My pretty Nokia N70 M with 1GB Card was picked up and it’s nowhere to be found. I have lost my food photo buddy .. sob sob

I have alerted the security and searched everywhere. Hopefully someone will return it back to me..

 

Sungta Dangar

This is one of my fav foods. I know I say this about every post here! But can’t help it guys! All foods are so yummy that they become fav

Sungta is Prawns and Dangar means Cutlet. Result ? Prawn Cutlets.

You can imagine the next… delicious prawn cutlets served with humman and hot rice! A truly complete meal for me

Here’s how the dangars are prepared…
Ingredients:
1/2 cup prawns (shelled and cleaned)
1/2 cup freshly grated coconut
1 small onion
3-4 tbl spn of rava
1/2 lemon or 1 tbl spn tamarind juice
1/4 tea spn turmeric powder
1/2 tea spn chilli powder
1/2 tea spn samaar masalo (Recipe given below. I used Chandelkar’s Vegetable Masala)
salt to taste
oil for shallow frying

About the masala:
You can use any Vegetable masala you may have. I have made cutlets without using the samaar masala - only adjust chilli powder to taste.

Method:

Chop the onions finely.

If the grated coconut is thick, grind the coconut with samaar masalo and keep aside. Else directly mix the samaar masalo and coconut (i did it this way).

If the prawns are big, cut into small parts.

Add chilli powder and turmeric to the coconut masala. Add the lemon/tamarind juice and mix well.
Add in 2 tbl spns of rava, onions, prawns and salt and mix well. If the dough remains thin, then add in more rava and mix.
You should be able to roll the dough into a ball without it breaking at the sides.

Keep aside for 10 mins, so that the prawns are marinated.

Take a small portion of the masala and flatten it using your palms. Make them slightly thin so that the prawns are cooked properly.Repeat till the rest of the masala is used.

Heat oil on a tava. Keep the cutlets and fry till they turn dark brownish. Won’t be all sides but you can see marks on the cutlets. (See the pic). The prawns will also turn whitish, implies that they are cooked.

Serve hot with fish curry-rice

For Samaar Masalo: (Adapted from the book ‘Ishtaan’ with ingredient quantity reduced)
Ingredients
1 cup Coriander seeds
2 cups Dry Red Chillies (twice the volume of coriander seeds)
1 tea spn pepper corns
1 tea spn turmeric powder
a little oil

Method: Heat the oil on the tava and roast the red chillies on it. Keep aside. Roast separately - coriander seeds and pepper corns. Dry grind all the spices in a mixer to a fine powder.