INSTANT OATS IDLI

A healthy breakfast to kick start your day. These instant savoury idlis are made with roasted Oats and semolina and require no fermentation. 

It is packed with fibre and nutrients and is very filling. The best part is that there isn't much pre preparation required.

Instant Oats Idli

Ingredients: 

• Rolled oats 1 cup 
• Semolina (Rava) 1/2 cup
• Yoghurt 1/2 cup
• Baking soda (Eno salt) 1/4 tsp
• Carrot 1 no. (Grated) 
• Salt to taste
• For tempering: oil, mustard seeds 1/2 tsp, Urad daal 1/2 tsp, Asafoetida (hing) 1/4 pinch, green chillies 2-3 no.s, Curry leaves, coriander leaves 

Method of preparation: 

1. Dry roast the oats for a few minutes and grind to a fine powder when cool. 
2. In a pan, heat oil and splutter mustard seeds. Add urad daal, when it turns golden brown, add the chopped green chillies and curry leaves. 
3. Now add the grated carrot, stir and sprinkle the asafoetida on top. 
4. When it is almost sautéed add the semolina/Rava and coriander leaves. Roast for a few minutes, switch off flame and leave it to cool. 
5. In a bowl, mix the powdered oats, roasted semolina mix and curd. Add salt to taste. Mix well, add water if required. The consistency would be same as that of idli batter. 
6. Add baking soda or Eno salt and mix well. 
7. Grease the idli moulds with little oil and pour the idli batter into each mould with a ladle. 
8. Steam for a few minutes and serve warm with Sambhar or chutney. 

Note: You can add finely chopped vegetable of your choice. Baking soda is added to get fluffy idlis.

FISH ROE (EGG) MASALA FRY

Fish roe or fish eggs is an excellent source of healthy fatty acids and micronutrients. It is really tasty, totally different to the taste of fish. Seasonally, you get to buy fish roe separately from the fish market. 

Here I am sharing the recipe of spicy fish egg fry masala (Kerala style) which is simple to make and can be served with rice, rotis etc.

Fish Roe masala

Ingredients: 

🍛Fish roe 1/2 kg
🍛Onion 1 no.
🍛Ginger & garlic paste 2 tbsp
🍛Tomato 1 no.
🍛Green chillies 2-3 no.s
🍛Curry leaves 2 sprigs
🍛Kashmiri chilli powder 2-3 tsp
🍛Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
🍛Pepper powder 1/2 tsp
🍛Garam masala 1/2 tsp
🍛Lemon juice 1/2 tsp
🍛Mustard seeds & fenugreek seeds 1/4 tsp each

Preparation: 

1. Wash the fish roe taking care to keep the shape intact. Drain and pat dry. Marinate the roe with little salt, 1/2 tsp chilli powder and a pinch each of turmeric and pepper powder. Squeeze in some lemon juice. Keep this aside for an hour. 
2. Heat oil in a wide mouthed pan and splutter the mustard and fenugreek seeds. Add the ginger garlic paste, sauté for a bit, then add sliced onion and green chillies. When this turn soft and transluscent, add chopped tomato and stir. 
3. Now add the rest of the spice powders and roast till the raw smell leaves. When the oil starts separating from the spice mix, slowly add the marinated fish roe and give a gentle stir. Add some water and cover and cook for a few minutes. 
4. When it is almost cooked, flip the other side and cook for 3-4 minutes. Now the water would have disappeared and the fish roe will be roasting in the masala. Leave it to roast in low flame for a few minutes. 
5. Add the curry leaves, remove from flame and serve hot.

BREAD & BUTTER PUDDING

Bread and Butter pudding is something from the British cuisine, a traditional type of bread pudding. This is made by using buttered bread, milk and eggs. Usually stale bread or croissants are used to prepare this. 

Since this is simple to prepare and the ingredients are easily available, you can prepare this dessert for lunch when guests turn up at short notice.

Bread & Butter pudding 

Ingredients:

• Bread slices 8 no.s (white bread, medium sliced)
• Butter 1 tbsp (for greasing & buttering)
• Milk 300 ml
• Eggs 3 no.s (size 7 - medium sized)
• Caster sugar 60 grams
• Cream 100 ml (optional)
• Vanilla extract 1 tsp
• Sultanas (Raisins) 50 grams
• Nutmeg powder - a small pinch

Preparation:

1. Remove the crusts from the bread and butter the slices. Take half of the slices and cut diagonally into triangle shape.
2. Butter a shallow wide mouthed oven proof dish. Arrange a layer of square shaped bread slices with the buttered side up. Sprinkle some nutmeg and raisins on top. Arrange the remaining pieces of bread on top and sprinkle the rest of the raisins on top.
3. Beat the eggs, whisk the caster sugar in followed by milk, cream and vanilla extract. When it is combined well, pour it over the bread slices by straining it through a sieve. Leave it to stand to allow the bread to soak up the custard, may be around half an hour. Preheat the oven to 160 deg Celsius.
4. Sprinkle some butter and sugar on top of the soaked bread. Bake it until well set (at 160 deg C for 30-35 minutes). When the bread becomes golden brown and lightly toasted around the edges, switch off the oven.

Yummy bread and butter pudding is ready. This can be served hot or cold. Try adding little vanilla ice cream to warm, gentle pudding.

RABRI/ RABDI

Rabri is a milk based Indian sweet. This is prepared by boiling milk in low heat for a long period of time till it becomes dense and changes its colour. 
This can be served chilled on its own or by adding jalebi, boondi etc. to give it a special twist.

Rabri

Ingredients: 

• Full fat milk 1 litre 
• Sugar 2 tbsp 
• Saffron strands a pinch 
• Rose water 1/4 tsp 
• Cardamom - crushed 1 tsp 
• Crushed almonds, pistachio etc 2 tsp

Preparation: 

1. Soak the saffron strands in 2 tsps of milk and keep it aside. In a heavy bottomed pan, bing the milk to boil. 
2. Lower the heat, keep stirring the milk while it gently boils. Scrap the sides of the saucepan with a ladle every 10 minutes or so. 
3. When the milk is reduced to less than half of the original quantity, add the crushed cardamom, sugar, soaked saffron and rose water. Leave it to simmer for a few more minutes. 
4. Transfer the Rabri to earthen pots, add the crushed dried nuts (almonds & pistachio) and keep in the refrigerator to chill. 

Serve after a couple of hours. 

KESAR SHAHI TUKDA

This is a delicious Indian bread pudding flavoured with saffron and enriched by adding Rabri (condensed dense sweet milk). It is very rich in flavours and makes a perfect sweet for any occasion. 

SHAHI TUKDA

Ingredients: 

• Bread slices 4 no.s 
• Rabri 1 cup (please see previous post for recipe https://mviverakitchen.blogspot.com/2018/11/rabri-rabdi.html) 
• Ghee/ Oil 
• Crushed dried nuts - almonds, pistachio & cashew 
• Sugar syrup - water 1 cup, sugar 3/4 cup, crushed cardamom 1 tsp, saffron strands 1 pinch 

Preparation: 

1. At first, prepare the sugar syrup by boiling the water and sugar in a pan. Add the cardamom and saffron strands and simmer it till the sugar syrup reaches one string consistency. Keep it aside. 
2. Take the bread slices, cut the edges off and slice them into triangle shapes. Fry these bread pieces in ghee till golden brown and crisp. Here I have shallow fried, in original recipe it is deep fried. 
3. Soak the fried bread pieces in sugar syrup for a minutes, remove and arrange in a platter. 
4. Pour the chilled Rabri over the fried bread slices and garnish with chopped nuts. 

This can be served warm or cold, we generally prefer serving chilled. 

VEGETABLE UPMA

This is a colourful and tasty breakfast, and healthy too because of the nutritious vegetables added. This is simple to prepare, the procedure followed is the same as that of Rava Upma. There isn't much pre-preparation required and is fuss-free, which is quite handy during busy mornings.

Ingredients: 

• Rava (Semolina) 1 cup
• Onion 1 no. 
• Ginger 1" piece 
• Green chillies 2-3 no.s 
• Green beans 4-5 no.s 
• Carrot 1 small 
• Green peas 1/4 cup 
• Ghee 1/2 tsp 
• Salt & water - as required 
• For seasoning of the Upma: Oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, urad dal, red chillies, asafoetida (hing)

Preparation: 

1. In a pan, dry roast the semolina till aromatic. Finely chop the onion, ginger, green chillies and vegetables. Keep both aside. 
2. In a frying pan, heat oil and splutter mustard seeds. Now add the curry leaves, dried red chillies, urad dal and hing. To this add the chopped onion, ginger and green chillies. Sauté for a few minutes, add the vegetables, sprinkle salt to taste and cook uncovered for a couple of minutes.
3. Note: You can add the vegetables of your choice like potato, cauliflower, broccoli etc. 
4. To this add 2 cups of water, add ghee when the water starts boiling. Add salt to taste, reduce the heat and add roasted semolina little by little, stirring continuously. Ensure that no lumps are formed. Cook in medium heat till the water is absorbed. Stir occasionally to ensure the Upma is cooked evenly. 

Tasty vegetable Upma is ready, serve with chutney and/or papad. Here it is served with tomato chutney.

BEETROOT PICKLE

This Pickle is made with Beetroot and dates; usually served with biryani, pulao etc. This dish takes a little more than a day to process for the flavours to settle in and traditionally this is how it is prepared. 

Beetroot Pickle

Ingredients: 

• Beetroot 1 no. 
• Dates 8 no.s (seedless) 
• Red chilli powder 1 tsp 
• Garlic 4-5 cloves 
• Green chilly 1-2 no.s 
• Vinegar 1/2 cup 
• Salt - for taste 

Method of preparation: 

1. Clean and grate the beetroot. Finely chop or grate or crush the dates and garlic cloves. 
2. Take a clean, dry bowl and mix together the grated Beetroot, garlic, dates, thinly sliced chilli and the rest of the ingredients. Mix well with your fingers to make sure all ingredients are combined. 
3. Leave this to rest for 24 hours for the ingredients to soak in vinegar and salt. Check the salt before serving. 

This Pickle is ready to be served after one day's marination. This can be stored in a clean container in the fridge for a few days. 

TOMATO CHUTNEY

This is one of the basic side dishes served with popular South Indian breakfast like Idli, Dosa etc. Tomato chutney tastes tangy and mildly spicy. 

The preparation may vary between regions, however the basic ingredients include tomatoes, onion and red chillies. Here, I have added some whole cashew nuts which gives enriches the texture and flavour of the chutney.

TOMATO CHUTNEY

Ingredients for this chutney: 

• Tomatoes 3 no.s
• Onions 2 no.s (medium)
• Dried red chillies 4 no.s
• Cashew nuts 6-8 no.s (whole)
• Urid dal 1 tsp
• Chana dal 1 tsp
• Garlic 2 cloves
• Cumin 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric powder a pinch
• Salt as required
• For tempering: Mustard seeds, urid dal, curry leaves

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a pan, splutter the cumin seeds and sauté the sliced onion and garlic. Add the cashew nuts and dals, fry well.
2. Add the turmeric powder, dried red chillies and sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle adequate salt. When the tomatoes turn soft and mushy, switch of flame and leave it to cool down. (You can substitute the chillies with red chilli powder).
3. In a blender, grind this until smooth and creamy. Since the ingredients are soft and moist, no water is required while grinding. You could sprinkle some water if needed. Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl.
4. In a pan, heat oil, splutter mustard seeds and the rest of the ingredients for tempering. Pour this to the chutney.

Serve with Dosa, Idli, Paniyaram etc.

PANEER GULSHAN

Paneer Gulshan is a semi-dry dish made with paneer and capsicum cooked in rich flavourful spice mix. This can be had with rice, rotis, phulkas etc. 

PANEER GULSHAN

Ingredients: 

• Paneer 1 cup 
• Onion 2 no.s (big) 
• Ginger 1" piece
• Garlic 5-6 pods 
• Capsicum 1 no. 
• Tomato 2 no.s (medium) 
• Coriander powder 1 tsp
• Red chilly powder 1/2 tsp
• Cumin 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp
• Channa masala 1/2 tsp
• Kasuri methi 1/2 tsp
• Coriander leaves (for garnishing) 

Preparation: 

1. Slice the paneer lengthwise into long strips, slice capsicum too the same way. Finely chop onion and tomatoes. 
2. Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds. Add onion slices and sauté well. Now add the freshly crushed ginger garlic and sauté till raw smell is gone. 
3. Gradually add the spice powders and stir. 
4. Add the chopped tomatoes and capsicum, mix well so those pieces are coated with the masala. 
5. Add salt to taste, sprinkle little water, cover and cook for a few minutes in low flame. When the gravy thickens, oil will start floating on the top. 
6. Add paneer strips, chopped coriander leaves and crushed kasuri methi. Combine well and cook for another minute or so. 

CHILLI PANEER

This is an Indo-Chinese fusion recipe for paneer. Chilli Paneer can be served as a starter or as a side for fried rice, naan etc. 

Given below is a quick an easy recipe for preparing dry chilli paneer.

CHILLI PANEER

Ingredients: 

• Paneer 250 gms (cubed) 
• Capsicum 1 no. 
• Onion 1 no. (big) 
• Garlic pods 3-4 no.s 
• Green chilli 3-4 no.s 
• Chilli sauce 1 tbsp
• Soya sauce 1 tbsp 
• Tomato sauce 1/2 tbsp 
• Pepper powder 1/2 tsp
• Lemon juice 2 tsp
• Coriander leaves 2 tbsp (chopped) 
• Salt and oil - as required 
• To prepare batter to fry the paneer cubes: All purpose flour/ maida 1.5 tbsp, Corn flour 1.5 tbsp, salt.

Preparation: 

1. Prepare batter to coat the cubed paneer pieces, the consistency should be not too thick or watery. The paneer pieces are to be well coated. In a pan, heat oil, fry these batter coated paneer pieces and set aside. 
2. Cube the onion and capsicum. Crush the garlic pods and slice the green chillies lengthwise. 
3. In a pan, gently fry the green chillies and crushed garlic. Add the onion pieces and fry till translucent. Now add the capsicum pieces followed by the sauces, pepper powder and salt. Mix well. 
4. Add the fried paneer pieces, squeeze a few drops of lemon juice in and toss well. When everything is blended evenly, remove from fire and sprinkle the chopped coriander leaves.

Shiny chilli paneer is ready.