Avarekai Sambhar

Avarekai, known as 'Flat Beans' in English has been one of my favourites since I was a kid. Avarekai is available in Indian stores under the name 'Surti Papdi Lilva', usually in the frozen section. I am also posting a picture of avarekai for the ones who are not familiar with it.I have for you the recipe for 'Avarekai Sambhar'..... Hope you like it as much as I do! :-)

Ingredients:

2 cups Avarekai
1 cup Grated coconut
3 tsp Coriander seeds
1/2 tsp Jeera
1/2 tsp Pepper powder
4-5 Medium spiced red chillies
A pinch Hing
1 tsp Mustard seeds
3-4 Curry leaves
1/2tsp Tamarind paste
1"cube Jaggery
salt as per taste

Method:

1. Pressure cook avarekai with water and salt. Drain excess water and keep aside.


2. Heat a kadai and dry roast the coriander seeds, jeera, pepper powder and red chillies. Saute continuously.They are done when the coriander seeds change colour and you get the fresh aroma of the masalas.


3. Powder the masalas in a blender.


4. Add coconut to the masala and blend it again to make a fine paste. You can even add some of the cooked avarekai while blending. This gives the sambhar a little more thickness.


5. Add this masala to the previously cooked avarekai and boil on stove. You can add water to get the desired consistency.


6. Add tamarind paste and jaggery to the sambhar after it starts boiling. Add salt as per taste.


7. For seasoning, heat oil and add mustard seeds. Add curry leaves and hing after the seeds splutter.


8. Serve hot with rice and enjoy!

Baingan Bharta

Brinjal (Eggplant) is one vegetable that many people dislike and its no different in our house. I don't remember having cooked brinjal more than 1-2 times in the past one year..... But this recipe that I got from one of my friends is so good, that Naveen doesn't seem to mind Brinjals anymore!! :-) . I plan to make it more often from now on. Hope you like it too!

Ingredients:

1 Large Brinjal(Eggplant)

1 Onion finely chopped

1 Tomato finely chopped

1tsp Ginger/Ginger-garlic paste

1tsp Garam masala

1tsp Chilli powder

1tsp Ajwain powder (Om seeds)

1tsp Dhania powder (Coriander powder)

3tsp Oil

1tsp Jeera

1tsp Lime juice

sat as per taste

Method:

1. Grease the brinjal with some oil all over. Make 5-6 cuts on the surface with a knife.
2. Preheat the oven to 375F and bake the brinjal until it is competely cooked and soft.Note: If you do not have an oven, u can even cook the brinjal on the stove in a covered vessel with some oil. Remember to saute frequently.
3. Remove the brinjal from the oven and let it cool down. After it cools, remove the skin and mash the brinjal with a potato masher or a spoon.
4. In the meanwhile, heat the oil in a kadai and add jeera and ginger-garlic paste
5. Add the chopped onions after the seeds splutter and fry till they become transparent.
6. Add tomatoes when the onions are almost done. Add a little water and cook covered for about 2 mins.
7. Add the mashed brinjal to the above mixture. You can add water to get the consistency you need.
8. Add all the remaining dry masalas and cook for another 2 mins.
9. Remove from stove, add the lime juice and mix well.
10. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with rotis/chapatis.

About me....

Hello Everybody!!

Let me first introduce myself to you.... My name is Ramya. I live in the US with my husband, Naveen.
Before my wedding I used to live in Bangalore, India with mom n dad and I had never entered the kitchen then. My job was just to chop vegetables (that too only on weekends) and mom would take care of the rest of the stuff. You wouldn't believe, I needed mom's help to even make the 2min Maggi!!!!! :-)
But after I got married, cooking became a necessity. Since I came to the US immediately after wedding, I had no go but to start cooking and expermenting all by myself. It was only then that I realized that cooking isn't all that difficult. All it takes is some amount of interest and a little sense of taste, which I'm sure we all have! I admit that not all my trials came right the first time.... but it gets easier with every try. Its been just above a year since I started cooking and I feel more confident now.
My blog is more for the beginners in cooking. I have tried quite a few recipes in the past year and I would love to share them with all of you. I will start with the simple day-to-day south indian recipes that I make at home for lunch/dinner and then move on to the other ones that I have tried.
I hope you enjoi it..... and remember, cooking itsn't all that difficult!!! Give it a try and it gets more n more enjoyable with every try :-)
And don't forget to leave comments and let me know how it turns out.