Flavors from different parts of India - Yummies from Blogosphere!!!

I am so happy to post two recipes for this week's edition of Yummies from Blogosphere...they can be served as a neat combo in a meal. The greatest thing about these two recipes is that, they represent two very diverse sides of Indian cuisine...and they also represent, I think, the essence of the blog that they were originally posted on...A2Z Vegetarian Cuisine...the dynamic duo, Muskaan and Sadhana, who are the creators of that blog, use their space to present the best flavors from Western and Southern Indian cuisine.

So I decided to try out two wonderful recipes from those two cuisines that could be paired together, last weekend...the result...a wonderful, flavorful meal that represented some of the best flavors from Indian cuisine!!!  After this successful meal, my family has urged me to do this kind of combo more often...pairing up dishes from different cuisines and cultures...shakes up things and a departure from the normal, humdrum routine is fun...dont you think???

I chose to make Vaghareli Rotli, a wonderful yoghurt gravy dish from Gujarati(western Indian) cuisine and Eggplant Gothsu, a tangy Southern Indian side-dish...I served this combo with hot rotis(Indian bread)...it was heavenly!!!The best thing was that this flavorful meal was not only tasty but also extremely simple to make...no prep-ahead...no sweat-ahead:)))

Of course, I followed the original recipes as closely as possible...but you know me:)) I did make some minor changes...thats just me!!! For the Vaghareli Rotli...I added some fennel seeds(saunf) and fenugreek seeds(methi seeds) to the items for seasoning...and to the Eggplant Gothsu, I added some tomatoes, for some additional tanginess.

Here are the original recipes as posted on A2Z Vegetarian Cuisine for Vaghareli Rotli and Eggplant Gothsu...Enjoy!!! Thanks, Muskaan and Sadhana!

Recipe for Vaghareli Rotli:
Ingredients:

6 Leftover Roti (Whole Wheat flat bread)
1 C Yogurt, preferably sour
2 tsp Besan ( Bengal gram flour)
Water to dilute
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
1/2 tsp coriander-cumin (dhana-jeeru )powder
lemon juice according to taste if yogurt is not sour
1 Tbsp Cilantro, Chopped
Salt to taste.
For tempering:
1 Tbsp Olive / Canola Oil
1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
2 Slit Green Chillies
Few Chopped Curry Leaves
1/4 tsp Hing (Asafoetida)


Method:
1. Mix yogurt and besan (gram )flour & add approximate of 1 Cup of water to dilute this mixture, whisk it nice to avoid lumps.
2. Heat oil in a wok, add mustard seeds, as it spluters, add cumin seeds, curry leaves, asafoetida, then pour above yogurt + besan mixture to it, while constantly stir it.
3. Bring it to boil, add the rest of the ingredients, stir it, and now with your fingers tear apart the flat bread you made (leftover roti) into medium small pieces just like size of potato chips, and put it in this boiling yogurt sauce.
4. Once you add flat bread pieces into this sauce, stir it and put the flame off. Let it sit for a while, as these bread pieces will soak up all the sauce, leaving behind some gravy. Thats perfect consistency.
5. Its ready to serve hot, with some sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

                      
Recipe for Eggplant Gothsu:
Cooking Time: 20 min

Preparation Time: 10 min
Serves – 4


Ingredients
Egg Plant (small) - 4 to 5
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Onion (medium) - 1
Curry leaves - few
Green chilly - 2 to 3 or to taste
Oil - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad Dhal - 1/2 tsp
Channa dhal - 1/2 tsp
Asafoetida - small piece
Tamarind - goose berry size ball.
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Rice Flour - 1 1/2 tsp
Salt to taste.
Garnishing:
Chopped Cilantro – 2 tablespoons
This is normally made by roasting the egg plant and peeling the skin and using the pulp inside. The eggplant I had was too small to roast and I didn’t have the time to bake it and peel and take the pulp out.


Method
1) Soak Tamarind in water.
2) Heat Oil and add mustard seeds, once they splutter well add urad dhal, channa dhal, and asafoetida.
3) Once the dhal browns a little add green chilly, chopped ginger, onion pieces and curry leaves.
4) Cut the egg plant into small pieces and add it to the above.
5) Now add turmeric powder and salt and cover it for a while till the egg plant gets cooked.
6) Once it is cooked squeeze out the tamarind pulp from the soaked tamarind using water and add it to the egg plant mixture.
7) This should be in-between consistency of rasam and sambhar, so add water accordingly.
8) Once the tamarind water boils well and the raw smell is gone, mix the rice flour in little bit of water and add the paste to this mixture.
9) Simmer for a minute or two till the gravy thickens and is not very watery and switch of and garnish serve with Pongal or Idli.

Comfort Foods Series #2 - Traditional and Delightful South Indian Lentils and Veggies Curry(Molaguttal)

I guess it is my Southern Indian background which makes me reach out to the traditional tastes and flavors that I remember from my childhood, again and again...especially on the days that I am more harried and stressed than usual, I always find myself making these familiar comfort foods...and most of the time(if not always) they include some combination of lentils and veggies.

The sights and sounds of our old family home in Kerala(India) come back to me every time I make these comforting dishes and though I dont get to go back there very often... I still find myself mentally transported there, to the land of everlasting lush greenery, coconut palms and mango trees...which are never far away from my mind.

Molaguttal is one such traditional Tamilian/Keralite dish(made mostly by Tamilians settled in Kerala for many years). It is a great curry that can accompany rice or chappathis/phulkas or even, parathas. Traditionally, it is made with veggies like white pumpkin, cabbage or spinach either by themselves or in some combination but I have also successfully used veggies like cauliflower, green peas, carrots, chayote(aka chow-chow or bangalore kathirikkai) and even, broccoli.

I find myself making this dish more often nowadays, because the kids seem to love this dish and eat more of it compared to a lot of other dishes...maybe it is the simplicity of its taste that makes it appealing to them. I dont question it at all, I just tend to make it almost every week and find it disappearing before I know it...which is a definite vote of confidence for  me!!!

Here is the recipe:


Molaguttal ( Southern Indian Curry with lentils and veggies) -
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Serves: 4
Prep/cook time: 20 to 25 mins.


Ingredients:-
1/2 to 3/4 cup of toovar dal(split yellow lentils/red gram)- pressure cooked for 3 whistles and kept aside
1/2 cup shredded cabbage1/2 cup chopped methi(fenugreek) leaves
1/4 cup diced carrot


For grinding into fine paste:-
1/4 to 1/2 cup of grated coconut(fresh or desiccated)
1/4 cup cummin seeds(jeera)
3 or 4 red chillies (Asian/Indian variety long, thin dried chillies)
1 tsp urud dal(split black gram dal)


For seasoning:-
1tsp Black mustard seeds(rai)
1tsp cummin seeds(jeera)
1tsp urud dal(split black gram dal)
Few curry leaves
2 dry red chillies( 1 chilli if you would like it to be less spicy or just omit this item totally)
Oil - 1 to 2 tsp


Turmeric powder - a pinch
Salt


Method:-
In a pressure cooker, add the vegetables and turmeric and enough water to cover up all the veggies and pressure cook for 3 whistles(till veggies are almost cooked).


Alternately, you could cook all the veggies and turmeric with water in a pan till they are almost fully cooked(takes about 7 to 8 mins on medium - high heat)


Take the ground fine paste of cummin seeds, urud dal, red chillies and coconut and add it to the veggies alongwith salt and let come to a boil(takes about 4 to 5 mins on medium high heat).


Then add the cooked lentils(dal) to the mixture. Let it cook till everything comes to a light bubbly consistency.


In a separate pan, add all the seasoning ingredients with oil and let it fry till mustard seeds start crackling.


Add these seasonings to the molaguttal curry.


Serve hot or at room temperature with brown/white rice, rotis, parathas and so on. You could also store this for upto a week in the refrigerator.


Note: all ethnic ingredients available at Asian/Indian grocery stores.