Andhra Style Coconut Rice

Cooking time - 30 minutes
Serves - 3 to 4

Ingredients

Raw Rice - 2 cups
Coconut Milk - 3 cups
Water - 1 cup
Ginger Garlic Paste - 1 1/2 tsps (or you can use 6 - 8 cloves of garlic)
Green Chillies - 4, slit lenth-wise
Onion - 1 big
Cardamoms - 3 to 4
Cinnamon - 1 small stick
Bayleaf - 1
Cloves - 4 medium or 5 small
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt t o taste
Ghee - 1/2 tbsp
Oil - 1/2 tbsp
Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method

1. Heat ghee and oil in a pressure cooker.
2. Add the Cinnamon, Cardamoms, Bayleaf and cloves. Fry for a minute.
3. Add the onions and fry until it turns pink.
4. Mix the ginger garlic paste and turmeric powder. Saute in medium heat until for 5 minutes.
5. Add the raw rice and fry for a minute.
6. Put in the coconut milk and water. Add salt,  close the cooker lid and let it blow 3 whistles. 
7. Garnish with coriander leaves before serving. 

This coconut rice can be served with all types of raita, any type of kurma and any spicy curry. 

Cheese Rice

This one is for cheese addicts like me... who are bored at home and don't want to spend hours at the kitchen! This recipe was concocted by me in one of those absolutely boring saturday afternoons! Its a little heavy, so consume smaller quantities of this!

You can add vegetables, oregano, chilli flakes or eggs as per your taste!

Serves - 1 
Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• Leftover rice (from the previous hour of the day) - 1 cup
• Milk - Half cup
• Grated Cheese - 1 cube
• Onion - 1 small or 1/2 medium, finely chopped
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Salted butter - 1 tsp

Method:

1. Heat a kadai and melt the butter.
2. Add the onions and fry till its transluscent.
3. Add the milk, salt and pepper.
4. Add rice and let the rice cook in the milk for 5 minutes.
5. Add the cheese an mix until it reaches a creamy state.
6. EAT! :-)

Stir fried Macaroni

Ingredients:
1. Macaroni 200 gms
2. Cauliflower florets 1 cup
3.  Tomato 1 nos.cut in to small pieces.

4. Spring onions ½ cup

5. Button mushrooms 200 gms

6. Baby corn 100 gms

7. Carrots cut in to strips 100 gms

For the Sauce:
1.     Vinegar 1 tbsp
2.     Sugar 1/2 tsp
3.     Soya sauce 1 tbsp
4.     Olive oil 1 tbsp.
5.     Salt and pepper.

Method.
1. Boil the macaroni in salt water, drain and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in pan and add the vegetables one by one, keeping mushrooms and spring onions for the last and fry till they are cooked in HIGH FLAME.
3. Add salt and pepper for taste.
4. Add the macaroni and stir gently for 2 minutes. 
5. Add the sauces and mix gently .
6. serve hot as main course

This is a healthy dish loaded with vegetables. Kindly keep in mind that there is salt in soya sauce, so add salt with care. Fried egg can also be added as garnish.

Srilankan Curry

Serves up to 2 to 3

Preparation time 10 minutes

Cooking Time 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1.Potatoes 500 gms

2. Coconut milk 1 cup

3. Green Chillies 3 nos.

4. curry Leaves 1 small bunch.

5. Red chilli powder ½ tsp.

6. Good Quality Saffron ¾ tsp.

7. Garlic pod 2 nos. minced.

8. water ½ cup

9. Salt to taste.

Method:

1. Boil the potatoes, peel it and cut it in to medium sized cubes.

2. Heat little oil in pan and add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.

3. Add green chillies, potatoes, curry leaves and red chilli powder.

4. Fry for 2 minutes and and add coconut cream and salt.

5. Add salt.

6. Add water and cook over medium heat stirring frequently , until the coconut cream thickens, about 15 minutes.

7. Add saffron and cook for 5 minutes over low heat.

8. Once the gravy is ready, remove the pan from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes before serving with plain rice.

This dish is easy to prepare and uses less oil and regular ingredients that are readily available in the house.

Raw Banana Kofta Curry

Ingredients: 

For the koftas:
1 - raw banana (boiled, peeled and mashed)
1- potato (boiled, peeled and mashed )
Salt to taste
1 tsp - green chilly paste or red chilly powder
1 tsp - cumin powder
1 tsp - ginger paste
Bread crumbs or corn flour for binding
Oil for frying

For the curry:
1 big - onion
2 - tomatoes
1 tsp - ginger garlic paste
2 tbsp - grated coconut
cloves and cinnamon stick, a little
2 cardamoms
Coriander leaves
2 - green chillies
Salt and sugar for taste

Method:

1. Mix all ingredients for the kofta and prepare them separately. 
2. Dry roast the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon. 
3. Once it cools, grind them coarsely. 
4. In a kadai fry 2 tsp of ghee. 
5. Add 1 tsp of cumin, 2 onions cut in large pieces and fry until onions turn pink. 
6. Add ginger garlic paste and green chillies fry for a little while. 
7. Add the ground powder and fry for 1 minu te. 
8. Add chopped tomatoes and a little grated coconut. 
9. Add salt, fry until tomatoes become soft. 
10. Cool the mixture and grind it with some coriander leaves. 
11. Boil the mixture with the required amount of water to get curry consistency. 
12. Check salt. 
13. Add a little sugar for taste. 
14. While serving, add fried koftas and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Mirchi Coconut Biryani

Serves up to 4 

Preparation time 15 minutes

Cooking time 25 minutes

Ingredients 

1.Coconut 1 cup

2.Green chilies 4 to 6 as per taste

3.Onion 1 nos.

4.cinnamon stick 1/2 inch

5.Freshly ground garlic and ginger paste 2 tbsp. Kindly avoid pre grounded,bottled ginger garlic paste.

6. Coriander and fresh mint 1/2 cup

7.pepper 1/4 tbsp

8.Cardamom 3 nos.

9.Bay leaves 1 nos.

10.cloves 2 to 3

11.Dry dhaniya roasted 1/2 tbsp.

12.Juice of 1 Lemon.  

13. Basmathi Rice 1/2 kg

14.salt

15.Carrots diced 2 nos.

16.Beans cut 100 gms

17.potato diced 2 nos.

18.Soya nuggets 50 gms.

19. Jeera 1 tbsp

Method

1. Grind all the ingredients from 1 to 11 with little water to paste.

2.Heat little oil in a pan and add jeera.

3.Add all the vegetables and saute for 5 minutes.

4.Now add the ground paste and cook for 5 minutes.

5.Add salt to taste.

6. Add basmathi rice and water and cook.

7.Finally add juice of 1 lemon.

Note : Soak Basmathi rice in water for 30 minutes. 

Paneer in Coconut Cashew gravy

This recipe is quick to make and tastes yummy with chapathis or rice. Doesn't require too many masalas. Like most of my curries, this one is also slightly fattening!! But definitely healthy...

Ingredients:
Paneer : 200 gms
Onion : 2 medium sized
Tomatoes : 2 medium sized
Ginger Garlic Paste : 1 tbsp
Cloves : 4 to 6
Cinnamon : 1 inch piece
Jeera : 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder : 1 tsp
Turmeric Powder : 1/2 tsp
Cilantro / Coriander : 2 sprigs
Salt to taste
Oil : 2 tbsp

For the paste :
Fresh Coconut : 1 cup
Cashews : 15
Green Chillies : 4 or 5

Method:

Grind the fresh coconut, cashews, green chillies and water until smooth. (You can also soak some poppy seeds (khus khus) and grind it... I skipped it though)

Heat oil in a kadai and add the jeera until they splutter.

Add cloves and cinnamon and let it roast for a few seconds.

Then add the ginger garlic paste to it and fry for a minute.

Now add the finely chopped onion and fry till the onions are translucent.

Add the finely chopped tomatoes and fry for 2 minutes.

Add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder. Sprinkle handful of water, cover and cook for another 2 minutes.

Then add the ground coconut mixture, salt and water to it. Close with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the paneer cubes, finely chopped coriander and mix well.

Cover and cook for 5 to 8 minutes. Switch off the flame and serve hot with roti or rice. 

Moong dal chilla

1. Soak half cup moong dal and half cup masoor / urad dal for half hour.

2. Break 200gms paneer with hand into small pieces.

3. Mix with salt and coriander leaves.

4. Heat 1/4 tsp oil, add jeera, break 3 dry red chillies into small pieces and put in into the oil. 

5. Once it crackles add it to the paneer and mix well.

6. Grind the soaked moong and masoor dal with 2 or 3 green chillies, 1/4 inch ginger, curry leaves, salt to taste and 1/4 tsp turmeric powder. Add water and grind till its of pouring consistency like dosa batter.

7. Heat a non-stick pan, add few drops of oil and pour some batter and spread like a dosa. 

8. Cook on both sides till its golden brown, before removing from tawa, spread a spoonful of the paneer mix, fold and serve.

Ps: you can spread some tomato ketchup / hot n sweet sauce before serving. It tastes pretty good with that too.