1) CAPSICUM PULAO

PULAO HISTORY: One of the earliest literary references to pilau can be found in the histories
of Alexander the Great when describing Bactrian hospitality. (Bactria was an eastern Iranian
province, probably the birthplace of Alexander's wife Roxana and geographically located in
modern Uzbekistan.) Plov is often considered to be one of the oldest preparations of rice which
has Persian roots. It was known to have been served to Alexander the Great upon his capture of
the Sogdian capital of Marakanda (modern Samarkand). Alexander's army brought it back to
Macedonia and spread it throughout Eastern Europe.

It is believed that proper preparation of pilaf was first documented by the tenth century scholar
Abu Ali Ibn Sina (Avicenna). Pilau became standard fare in the Middle East over the years with
variations and innovation by the Arabs, Turks and Armenians. It was introduced to Israel by
Bukharian and Persian Jews.

The Mughals introduced many Persian dishes to South Asia including rice dishes. Pulao
(sometimes spelt 'pulav') is a South Asian dish made of rice. It may be made with peas, potatoes,
mutton, beef, or chicken. It is usually served on special occasions and weddings and is very high
in food energy and fat. Meat pulao is a North Indian tradition, especially among the Muslim
population. Biryani is a Pakistani and Indian dish very similar to pilaf introduced during the
Mughal period. It is made from basmati or similar aromatic rice. In Persian cuisine and Pakistani
cuisine, yakhni (also known as yahni), a soup or stock, is often served over pilaf (pulao).During
the years of the Soviet Union, the dish spread throughout the other Soviet republics, becoming a
favorite in such diverse places as Russia, Ukraine, and Georgia.

INGREDIENTS
1 Rice 1cup (Basmati/Biriyani)
Green Peas 1/2 cup
Beans 1/4 cup (optional)
Carrot 1 no. Diced in 1 cm cubes
Capsicums 3 nos Red, Green and orange colored cut in 3/4" Pieces
Onion sliced 2 medium sized
Garlic 7 to 8 cloves
Ginger 1.5 " piece
Green chillies 2 nos.
Cloves 6 to 8 nos.
Cinnamon 2 nos 1" pieces
Garam Masala 1/2 spoon
Cumins seeds 1/2 spoon
Oil 3 to 4 ladles
Salt to taste
FOR RAITHA (PACHADI)

1.5 Cups of fresh yogurt

1 medium sized Onion (diced in small pieces)
1 Sliced green chilli pepper
few leaves of cilantro for garnishing
1/2 tsp of grated ginger
salt to taste
Temper Raitha with mustard seeds and curry leaves.

METHOD OF PREPARATION

Prepare Ginger Garlic paste, slice onions Shell green peas, cut Beans in 1" pieces, Dice Carrots
and cut Capsicums in 3/4 " pieces and set aside.

If you are using Basmati Rice/ Biriyani Rice, ensure that the rice is old otherwise, if the rice is
new, toast the rice after soaking in water for ten minutes and draining all the water and toasting
in a kadai/wok in two spoons of ghee till the rice is very light creamy or pinkish looking.
Toasting for about ten minutes would do. This would ensure your rice grains remains separate
when cooking.

Cook Rice such that the grains are properly cooked but not mushy. You must add a little salt
before cooking rice. I suggest that you cook rice well in advance because, it will have enough
time to separate. Take Green peas and Carrots in a pressure pan , add quarter spoon of Sugar and
little salt. Pressure cook till 3/4 cooked. Immediately remove the vegetables from fire and keep
the lid of pan open. set aside. At this juncture make a coarse paste of Chillies and keep aside.
Now take oil in a Kadai/wok and add cloves, cinnamon and Cumin seeds. When cloves puff up ,
add Onions . Light fry till onions become translucent. At this point add multi colored capsicum
pieces and continue light frying for further five minutes. When fine aroma of Capsicums comes,
ensure that you keep on turning the capsicums so as not to let them get over cooked, They must
remain whole and crunchy and should not lose color. Add Ginger Garlic paste, fry just under a
minute add Garam Masala powder (pulao masala ) last and briskly mix the whole thing. Add
chilli paste and required quantity of salt to taste. Remember that there is salt in rice and also a bit
in vegetables you pressure cooked. You may use sliced chillies instead of chilli paste.

Now let the whole thing cook for a no more than two to three minutes on low flame. Take down
the cooked masala for mixing. Remove the rice in a broad vessel. Mix first the cooked vegetables
and slowly ladle by ladle mix masala and thoroughly mix. Cover the vessel after mixing and let it
stand for about half an hour at least. Reheat the Capsicum pulao in a Non stick pan or in Micro
and serve steaming hot. Serve with Onion Raitha.
2) IDLI

IDLI HISTORY: Idli has a long history in southern Indian cuisine. One mention of it in
writings occurs in the Kannada writing of Shivakotiacharya in 920 AD and it seems to have
started as a dish made only of fermented black lentil. Chavundaraya II, the author of the earliest
available Kannada encyclopedia "kopakara" (c. 1025), describes the preparation of idli by
soaking urad dal (black gram) in butter milk, ground to a fine paste and mixed with the clear
water of curd, and spices. The Kannada king and scholar Someshwara III, reigning in the area
now called Karnataka, included an idli recipe in his encyclopedia, The Manasollasa, written in
Sanskrit ca. 1130 A.D. There is no known record of rice being added until some time in the 17th
century. It may have been found that the rice helped speed the fermentation process. Although
the ingredients used in preparing idli have changed, the preparation process and the name have
still remained the same.

INGREDIENTS

3 parts Par Boiled rice (Idly Rice) (600 gms)

1 part de husked whole Black gram/ Split Black gramm Dal (200 gms)
1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds
1.5 tsp salt
1.25 liter water

Method of preparation

Soak Black gram and rice separately in non chlorinated water for 3 hours. Wet grind both
separately using wet grinder or Indian food processor into thick paste. Rice paste should have
fine granular feel and should not be turned into smooth paste like that of dosais.When done, mix
both pastes and add salt . Mix thoroughly.Leave it over night in a warm place to ferment.
Generally the batter increases to 2.5 times in volume.Next day, taste for salt and agitate the batter
to remove excess air.Pour ladleful of batter into pre oiled Idly plates and steam cook.

3) MEDHU VADA, THAYIR VADAI, DAHI BHALLA

HISTORY: The earliest Tamil writings are traced to about 300 BC, but references to edibles and
food habits abound in literature between 100 BC and 300 AD (Idaicchangam). Dosai and Vadai,
as said above, were popular. Medu vada or Medhu vada or for that matter any type of Vada has
its origin in Tamil Nadu.

INGREDIENTS (for thick paste)

Dehusked Blackgram/Blackgram Dal....1.5 cups

Green gram dal (Moong Dal) 2 Tbsp
Rice flour.......1.5 Tbsp
Ginger ....1" piece thumb thickness
Green chili peppers ...2 to 3 nos
Salt....1 tsp or as per taste

OTHER INGREDIENTS

For Dahi Bhalla

Fresh Yogurt.....500 ml
Date Tamarind chutney 3 to 4 tbsp
Roasted cumin powder...1 tbsp
Red Chili powder.....1 tsp
Sugar ...2 to 3 Tbsp
Rock salt powder for sprinkling/adding
Cilantro few leaves for garnishing

FOR THAYIR VADAI

Fresh Yogurt.....500 ml
Red chili peppers 2 to 3 nos
Mustard seeds.....1/4 tsp
Curry leaves... 1 sprig
Grated Ginger...1 tsp
Green chili peppers...1 to 2 nos sliced thinly
Cilantro...Few leaves for garnishing
Salt to taste
Oil......1 tbsp

FOR PLAIN VADA

Coconut chutney....1/2 cup
 Method Of Preparation : Soak dals for 3 hours and using either mortar stone or heavy duty
Indian food processor (Mixi), prepare thick paste of dals with ginger and green chili peppers.
Add salt to taste and gently mix thoroughly.

Prepare large balls of Marbles of 1.5 inch dia with two palms . Place it on a plastic sheet and pat
it to make doughnut like shape. Prepare two to three vadais like this and deep fry in oil on
medium flame . When the vadais become light biscuit brown, they are ready. Strain excess oil on
tissue paper and serve with coconut chutney.

THAYIR VADA: Prepare curds for soaking vada by beating with an egg beater . Add salt to
taste.Add sliced green peppers and grated Ginger at this stage. Now temper beaten curds as
follows.

Take oil in a tempering ladle and heat on high. Add Mustard seeds, Red chili pepper (dry), and
when mustard seeds start crackling, add curry leaves and pour it over beaten curds.

Take about a litre of water and boil it. Add plain vadais one by one and soak in hot water for
about three to four minutes each. Remove from water, press gently between palms and remove
excess water from now soft vadais. Drop them in beaten curds . After about an hour or so, the
vadais would have absorbed curds and would be ready to be served. Garnish with cilantro leaves
and serve with curds.

DAHI BHALLA: Prepare traditional vadais but with a little rice flour to give it a little body and
tufffness. Prepare beaten curd as above but only add salt and sugar in curds. Some people love to
sprinkle rock salt on top of vadais and some add it to curds. Prepare cumin powder after roasting
to light brown shade.Keep aside. Similarly prepare Sweet Tamarind Date Chutney to pour it over
Dahi Bhallas.

Prepare vadas for soaking in the same manner as Thayir Vadais. Drop Vadais in beaten curd and
let it get soaked for at least a couple of hours if not three. When Dahi Bhallas are soft, sprinkle
rock salt, powdered cumin powder, red chili powder and using a spoon, pour sweet-sour Date
Tamarind chutney on each Dahi Vhalla. Garnish with cilantro and serve with curds.

4) DHOKLA

History : If Gujaratis were to be known with any other name, it can be with their flagship dish
called "DHOKRA" also known as Dhokla.Origin of Dhokra is mired into as much controversy as
Idli is. I quote this piece from a blog called "Controversial history".

The Dukkia is first mentioned in AD 1068 in Gujurati Jain literature, and dhokla appears in AD
1520 in the Varanaka Samuchaya. Besan flour is fermented overnight with curd, and steamed in
slabs which are then cut into pieces and dressed with fresh coriander leaves, fried mustard seeds
and coconut shreds. A coarser version is khaman and both are popular breakfast and snack foods
in Gujurat. But we have to note that Gujart was ruled by chalukyas and Rastrakutas for many
centuries before that and Idada may be from iddalige.

INGREDIENTS

Idli rice (Par boiled)...2 cup

black gram dal (urad dal) ..1/2 cup (if you are making Idada)
Chick pea dal (Channa Dal) ...1/2 cup (If you are making Dhokla)
Chick pea flour (Besan)...2 Table spoons
Fenugreek seeds.....1/4 tsp
yogurt ....1.5 Cups
ginger 1" thumb thick piece
green chili peppers 2 to 3
Cooking oil .....1 oz
Fruit salt/Eno.....1 Tsp
cilantro/coriander leaves....few for garnishing
Curry leaves 1 sprig
Salt to taste
Chili powder for sprinkling (few pinches)
water .....1 litre
Mustard seeds... 1.5 tsp
Sesame seeds....1.5 tsp

METHOD OF PREPARATION
 Sok both Dal and rice for couple of hours and then drain and dry under fan till fully dry. Powder
the dal and rice mix to Rawa (semolina) consistancy. Do not make fine flour. Set aside.

Take fresh curds ind mix dhokla powder to it. Add Fenugreek seeds . Add enough water to make
thick runny paste. Add salt to taste and then mix thoroughly in to uniform paste. Let it rest over
night at about 28 to 30 C temperature . You can use a preheated oven too. I preheat the oven for
about 5 minutes till temperature reaches about 30 C. Then I switch off the heaters and put the
fermenting batter in oven and leave it over night.

When you are ready to steam the Dhoklas, make a rough paste of Ginger and Green chili peppers
and mix in batter.

Take a pan and add Fruit salt/Eno with a spoon of cooking oil and make fine uniform white
liquid. Add Chickpea flour to this. If need be, add a little oil again . Mix thoroughly. Divide this
mix into two parts. Mix one portion to the Dhokla batter and besan mix. Using a ladle, mix them
vigorously within about 10 seconds and pour the batter in a pre oiled plate of the
steamer.Sprinkle red chili powder on top for decoration. Close the lid and steam cook the
dhoklas for 20 minutes . Open the lid after 15 mts and check. If your finger tip sticks and
removes the batter, it is not cooked yet. Generally it takes 20to 25 minutes.You can repeat the
process for the second plate as above.

When done, remove the plate , let it cool a bit and then cut into diamond shapes. Garnish with
cilantro and tempering of Mustard seeds and curry leaves. I also use sesame seeds along with
mustard.Traditionally Dhoklas are eaten dipping in peanut oil laced with salt and red chili
powder. They are also eaten with Garlic Chutney.

5) Khichadi

History: Khichadi has been very popular food item of India. Word Khichadi or Khichuri or
Khichadee means a mishmash of rice, Lentil or Moong beans with nothing else except spices or
a whole lot of things like veggies thrown in to make a Hotch Potch. Mughals too were fond of
Khichadi.

Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th century document, written by Mughal Emperor, Akbar’s vizier, Abu'l-Fazl
ibn Mubarak, mentions the recipe for Khichri, which gives seven variations .Lucknow Nawabs
too loved their own version called QUBULI which is Rice and Channa dal preparation.
In Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Kerala, another version of Khichadi is very popular. It is called
RAVA KHICHADI. This is a variation of Upama. Upama does not have turmeric but Rawa
Khichadi has Turmeric and a whole lot of vegetables thrown in. It is usually taken with Coconut
chutney. But I love to have it with Avakkai also.

INGREDIENTS

Semolina (slightly coarse) 150 gms.

Tomato (diced) 1 no.
Onion sliced 1 no.
Green Peas (shelled) 1/2 cup
Carrot (diced) 1 no.
Red Bell pepper a few pieces
Green bell pepper a few pieces
Ginger 2" piece
Green Chillies 3 to 4 nos.
Turmeric powder 1/2 Tsp.
Salt to taste
Lime juice 1 Tsp
Sugar 1 tsp

FOR TEMPERING

Mustard seeds 1 spoon

Red Dry chillies 2 to 3
Black gram dal 1.5 spoons
Pure Ghee 30 ml/cooking oil of choice
Curry Leaves 1 sprig

METHOD OF PREPARATION
First dice all the vegetables except Tomatoes and Onions, steam cook all the vegetables 3/4 in a
pressure pan or a steam cooker. As usual, do not forget to add a little salt and a little sugar to
vegetables to preserve color before you steam cook. Brate ginger and slice green chillies very
fine and set aside.

Take Ghee in a steel pan and add the tempering items, set on medium heat. When the mustard
starts to crackle, immediately lower the flame and add Semolina (rava) and stir briskly and fry on
low heat till Rava starts becoming light Pink. Now add about 400 ml of water and immediately
add diced tomatoes, Onions, Salt, Turmeric, Ginger and Green chillies. Add enough water so as
the whole thing is like Dosa batter. Now set the flame on medium and go on stirring briskly to
avoid rava sticking at the bottom.

After about six to eight minutes, the Rava gets fully cooked the Khichadi will become thicker.
check for salt and proper cooked rava.If water is less, add a little and stir briskly till you are
satisfied that Rava is fully cooked. Now add 3/4 cooked vegetables and mix thoroughly. Your
RAVA KHICHADI is ready.

You can Garnish with Freshly cut cilantro and serve along with Coconut Chutney. Remember
that coconut chutney is a must with Rava khichadi.