Avial , A kerala cuisine

1. Wash all the vegetables and slice them as said and keep aside.
2. Grind together coconut, green chillies and cumin seeds together by adding little water and make a fine paste and keep aside.
3. Heat the coconut oil in a deep bottom kadai or pan. Add the curry leaves,Asafoetida,  mustard seeds and allow them to crackle.
4. Add the vegetables and little water . Close it with a lid and allow it to cook for few minutes.
5. Check it after 10- 12 minutes.The vegetables would almost cooked by now. ( another way to check is check out for steam, once steam is seen coming ..its indicator that vegetables are cooked)
6. Add the fine paste and curd and mix well. Add salt and mix well. 
7. Cook it further for some 5-6 minutes will the coconut is well cooked.
8. The avial is ready. Serve it hot with steam rice and Sambhar.

 


Preparation Time: 1 hour
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves : 5 -6 persons
Shelflife:1 day
Serving Suggestion: Serve hot with steam rice and Sambhar.

• Chop and slice all the vegetables into equal size.
• Grind the paste finely
• The variation of vegetables can be left to personal choice .
• Take fresh coconut for this cuisine
• Use only coconut oil for this particular dish.
  

For masala:
Mustard seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
Cumin seeds (Jeera) - 1/2 teaspoon
Saunf - 2 pinches
Cloves - 4-5 nos
Cinnamon - 1 stick
Pepper - 10-12 nos
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Cardamom (small) - 3 nos
Cardamon (big) - 1 no
Maze - 1/2 of one  whole maze.

Egg - 1
Oil - 1/2 teaspoon
Chopped Onions (optional) - 1 teaspoon
Pepper powder ( freshly grounded) - as desired or just 2 pinches
Milk - 1 teaspoon
Salt - as per taste.

1.  Roast all the masala ingredients and let it cool down for 5 mins.
2. Grind it into powder and store it immediately in a airtight container or a pepper mill as per choice.
3. In a bowl, break open a egg. Add to it the chopped onions, pepper powder, milk and salt and beat well till it get mixed.
4. In a tawa or pan, heat oil. Pour the omelette mixture to it and spread well with help of a spatula or by just sliding down the pan with help of the handle.
5. Now sprinkle some masala over the top of the omelette and keep it for a minute before turning or flapping it to the other side. 
6. If needed, sprinkle the masala on the other side too.
7. When both sides are well cooked, it turns little brown. 
8. Remove and serve hot with meals.

Preparation Time: 5 minutes.
Cooking Time : 5 minutes.
Serves : 1 person.
Shelflife: Best fresh.
Serving suggestion:  Serve hot with meals.

• Adding milk, makes the omelette softer and tastier.
• The masala can be stored in pepper mill and used when needed. It stays fresh for as long as 6 months.

  The recipe for Onion chutney is quite simple and can be easily prepared by even a not so good at cooking person. It can be stored in refrigerator for 2 days and used ( heat it before using) as and when required.

Onions - 3 Big onion
Tomato- 2 medium
Whole dry red chillies - 5-6 nos
Fenugreek seeds - 5-6 seeds
Urad dal - 1 teaspoon
Gralic - 5-6 pods
Tamarind - size of a half lemon or 2 tablespoon of tamarind pulp
Salt - to taste.


For tempering: (Thadka)
Mustard seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 8-10 nos
Dry red chillies - 2-3 nos
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Oil - 1 tablespoon.

1. Chop the onions and tomatoes into big pieces and keep ready.
2. Take a non stick pan or a deep bottom Kadai. Add 1 teaspoon of oil and add fenugreek seeds and urad dal to it and saute till it turns pinkish. Now saute the onions, tomatoes, garlic and whole dry red chillies without adding further oil till the onions turn soft and transperant. 
3. Remove it from fire once the onions turn transparent and the tomatoes turn soft.
4. Cool it for few minutes.
5. Add this cooled mixture in a blender and blend it till it becomes a soft puree and set aside.
6. Keep a kadai over flame and add a teaspoon of oil to it. Heat it for few seconds.
7. Add the mustard seeds and allow it to crackle.
8. Add the asafoetida, curry leaves and the dry red chillies and saute for few seconds.
9. Now add the blended puree and saute it well. Add salt to taste.
10. Cook this chutney for 7-8 minutes on medium fire and keep stirring often.
11. Remove and serve hot with Rawa dosa or Methi Dosa.

Preparation Time: 20 minutes.
Cooking Time: 10 minutes.
Serves : 4 -6 persons.
Shelflife: 2 days if refrigerated properly.
Serving Suggestion: Serve hot with Rawa Dosa or Methi Dosa.

• Choose big pinkish onions for this chutney.
• Pick soft red fresh tomatoes for good taste.
• Dont add more than 5-6 fenugreek seeds or else it might turn sour in taste.
• Add tamarind as instructed.

Click here to learn and know more about Tamil Nadu recipes and cuisines - An Introduction To Tamil Nadu Recipes And Cuisines.

Spring onions - 2 bunches
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Red chilly powder - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida - 1 pinch
Salt - to taste
oil - 1 teaspoon

1.  Pick fresh spring onions with crisp leaves since they are much taster and healthy.
2. Wash them nicely under tap water and let them dry for few minutes.
3. Peel the outer layer of the spring onion . This is would give you good crispness to the food as the outer layer tends to wilted and tasteless due to over exposure to the environment.
4. Chop them into 1 inch pieces . Chop the bulbs in a way that you get in ring shapes as it them look nice especially to the childrens.
5. Keep a kadai over flame and add oil in it. Let the oil to heat for a minute.
6. Once the oil gets hot, add Asafoetida and  Mustard seeds. Let the seeds crackle.
7. Now add the chopped spring onions and saute them for a minute. Don't add water. Spring onions have natural moisture in them and let the vegetable to cook in its own water content so that becomes tastier and healthier.
8. Add the turmeric powder and chilly powder and saute for a minute.
9. Add salt as per taste and saute it well. 
10. Keep sating for some 7-8 minutes.
11. Once the vegetable is cooked well, it will be tender soft and will be transparent .
12. Remove and serve hot with chapatis or dal chawal.

Preparation time: 15 minutes.
Cooking time: 10 miutes.
Serves : 4 -6 persons.
Shelflife: Best fresh.
Serving suggestion: Serve hot with Chapati or Dal chawal.

• To pick good quality spring onion , always check the leaves. The one with crisp leaves are best.
• Also pick those spring onions which are bit green. ( Not necessary that it should be fully green, a part of it should be greener). Those are healthier as per nutritional value.
• Always peel off and discard the outer layer of the Spring onion, since they are not much crisp and tend to spoil the other parts which cooking.

Click here to learn and know more about Maharashtrian foods and cuisines- An Introduction To Maharashtrian Cuisine.

But some pickles can be prepared instantly and also can be served instantly . My mom taught me this instant manga uruga (uraga means pickles - A tamil word) and she usually prepares this every summer for me. I love this pickles, it is not only easy to prepare but also can be prepared quickly without much ingredients and can be served in a hour.

Raw Mangoes - 2
Red chilly powder - 2 tablespoons
Asafoetida - 2 pinches
Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Salt - As per taste
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - 10-12 nos or a string.
Oil - 8-10 tablespoons.

1. Pick good quality raw mangoes or Kairi from the market.
2. Wash them properly .
3. Chop them into tiny pieces. Cut them into very tiny pieces . The cubes should be the size of nail of your tiny finger.
4. In a bowl take the chopped pieces and add the turmeric powder, red chilly powder and salt to it.
5. Take a kadai and place it over flame. Add oil and heat it for 5-10 seconds. 
6. Once the oil is little hot, add the Asafoetida, mustard seeds and the curry leaves. Allow them to crackle.
7. Once the seeds crackle, pour the thadka to the chopped pieces.and mix well.
8. The pickle is ready. Just allow it to set for a hour and then the pickle is ready to serve. It's really instant and easy and tastes very nice.
9. Here a nice tip, you can use either raw mangoes or little ripened one. A little ripened but yet raw mango gives a delicious and yummy khatta mitta taste to the pickle which would you licking your fingers.

Preparation Time: 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Making Time : 20  minutes.
Serves : More than 30 people.
Shelflife: For a month if stored in air tight container in Refrigerator.
Serving Suggestion: Serve it with rice, curd rice, pongal or any roti of your choice.

• Chop the mangoes into tiny pieces. Bigger pieces takes long time to soak up and get readied.
• A half ripened mango can be used for a khatta-mitta yummy taste.

Click the link here to know and learn more about Tamil Nadu Recipes and Cuisines- An Introduction To Tamil Nadu Recipes And Cuisines.

Paanakam is a excellent summer drink and is healthy too. Since it is made of jaggery without using sugar , it makes it favorable to all the health conscious people.It tastes excellent when chilled and can be used as a summer drink to quench the thirst. Also it can be prepared and stored in Refrigerator for 2 -3 days.


Jaggery - 250 grams
Water - 10 cups
Sonth (Dried ginger / chukku) - 1 tablespoon
Peppercorns - 5-6 nos
Cardamom (Elaichi) - 6-8 nos
Lime juice - 2 tablespoon.

1. Get good quality jaggery for this recipe. I would recommend to use dark red/brown colour jaggery which is available in market.There are varieties of jaggery made in india but the dark coloured jaggery is high is iron content and is rich in sweetness and hence is considered good for both cooking and health benefits too. 
2. The above pic shows two variety of jaggery and i recommend using the darker one which is high in iron content and also sweetness.

Choose the second variety of jaggery for this sweet drink.

1.  Usually people dissolve jaggery in water and make this drink. But i prefer boiling the jaggery with 1 cup water over flame till it gets dissolved. This way a peculiar raw kind of taste of jaggery goes away.
2. Grate the jaggery and add a cup of water to it and heat it over flame till it gets dissolved. 
3. Remove from fire and add 10 cups of water to it. 
4. In a blender, take Sonth, Peppercorns and  Cardamom and blend it. Don't blend it into fine powder. 
5. Add this powder to the jaggery water and mix well.
6. Add the lime juice and mix well.
7. Refrigerate it for 3-4 hrs and serve chilled.

Preparation time: 20 mins.
Making time: 20 mins.
Shelflife: 3 days, if refrigerated.
Serves: 12 glasses approximately.
Serving Suggestion: Serve chilled.

•  Use dark coloured jaggery for Panakam.
• Don't blend the herbs into very fine powder.

Click the link here to know and learn more about Tamil Nadu Recipes and Cuisines -An Introduction To Tamil Nadu Recipes And Cuisines

Click the link here to know and learn more about Kerala Recipes and Cuisines - An Introduction To Kerala Recipes And Cuisines

Pick some good quality naturally ripened alphonso mango (it looks wrinkled from outside) and payiri mangoes for this recipe. Alphonso mangoes are usually pulpy and payiri is semi ripe or raw and is basically used for pickles and chutneys. So let me start with the procedure of Aamras. Hope you would enjoy this and give it a try. Have it with garam puris for excellent taste.



Alphonso Mangoes - 4 to 6 (naturally ripened pulpy ones)

Payiri Mangoes - 1 or 2 (  semi ripe)
Milk - 1 cup
Sugar - as required
Cardamom Powder (Elaichi powder) - 1/2 teaspoon (freshly ground)
Nutmeg Powder (Jaiphal powder) - 2 pinches (frshly ground).

1. Pick some good quality naturally ripened alphonso mangoes and semi ripe payiri mangoes from Market. The naturally ripened mangoes look wrinkled from outside unlike chemically ripened which looks polished from outside. May is the best month when you can find naturally ripened best quality mangoes in Market. Beware of chemical ripened mangoes since it is extremely hazardous to health.
2. Soak them in water for atleast two hours. This makes them pulp come out easily.
3. Remove from water and press and soften the mangoes lightly with hands to loosen the pulp.
4. Remove and peel the tip of the mangoes with fingers and press further to remove out the mango pulp in a bowl. Further squeeze the pulp from the seeds and remove all the pulp from the seeds. 
5. If payiri mangoes doesnt come out that easily then chop the skin and seperate it from the seeds by cutting them. Take both the mangoes in a bowl . 
6. Blend the mango pulps into a blender or hand blend it with a machine. Blend them till it is soft and completely smooth. 
7. Add sugar depending the amount of sweetness you need and again blend nicely till it gets mixed with mangoes.
8. Now add the milk and blend again nicely. Milk to enhance the taste and give a nice consistency to the pulp. Blend well till a nice smooth mixture is obtained.
9. Finally sprinkle the cardamom powder and nutmeg powder and mix slightly. 
10. Serve them with Hot puris for lunch. 

I have already posted recipe of puri in my blog and i will once again post it next time for a reference. 



Preparation Time: 2 hours and 20 minutes (including the soaking time).
Making Time: 20 minutes.
Serves : 8 persons.
Shelflife: 2-3 days if refrigerated nicely in tight container.
Serving Suggestion : Serve hot with puris.

• Pick only naturally ripened mangoes which look wrinkled from outside unlike chemically ripened which looks polished and is hazardous to life.
• Don't go for very raw payiri mango. Pick semi ripened ones.
• I have added cardamom and nutmeg powder to enhance the taste. You can skip them if needed.
• Add sugar as required. Taste the pulp and add as per needed.
• If you have problem with milk then you can avoid it. Even skimmed milk can be used for this recipe.

Karunai Kilangu - 1/2 kg
Grated coconut - 1/2
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Curry leaves- 8-10
Chana dal - 1 tablespoon
Coriander powder - 1 tablespoon
Red chilli Powder - 1 1/2 tablespoon
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
Onion - 1 big, chopped
Tomato- 3 medium, chopped
Tamarind Pulp - 1lemon sized tamarind ball (soak them in hot water and squeeze them to take the pulp)
Salt - to taste.
oil - 1 tablespoon

oil - 2 tablespoon
Curry leaves - 8-10
Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
Onion- 1 tablespoon of finely chopped onion

1. Wash the karunai kizhangu properly, since roots vegetables have lots of mud and soil sticking to them along with other fertilizers. So wash them properly and clean them and set aside.
2. In a steamer or pressure cooker, steam the kilangu for some 15 minutes. Some 2 whistles if you are using whistles or for some 15 minutes approximately if you are using steamer. Remove them from flame and let the pressure cool down which allows the vegetable to get cooked nicely which takes some 12 minutes on the go.
3. Meanwhile, add some hot water to the lemon sized tamarind ball. Well, lemon sized because the tamarind is balled into lemon sized using hands , the way ladoos are balled. Take a bowl and add some hot water in it and place the tamarind ball in it. This hot water will soften the tamarind and give a good pulp. So let them soak in the hot water for 10 minutes. Later, squeeze the tamarind in the hot water (don't throw the water, it is need to get the pulp) , and you can see the extract which is the tamarind pulp. After squeezing them nicely, filter out and throw out the root like left out tamarind substance and keep the pulp aside.
4. Now, open the cooker and take out the karunai kilangu. The skin would be softer and comes easily, so peel them off using the fingers and seperate the kilangu from its skin. 
5. Cut the karunai kilangu into 1/2 inch slices. Keep it aside.
6. In a pan, take 1 tablespoon of oil. Allow it to heat. Then add ginger, curry leaves and onions. Saute them till the onions turn pinkish and the raw smell of ginger leaves. Then, add the chana dal and saute it till it turn pinkish. Add tomatoes and asafoetida and saute it for a minute. Then add the turmeric powder, coriander powder and red chilly powder and saute them for a minute. Lastly add the grated coconut and saute them well for 3-4 minutes on low flame.This is the masala which will used to make the karunai kilangu kozhambu or the curry.
7. Remove this masala in a plate and let them cool which takes around 5-7 minutes.
8. Once it cools down, grind them with enough water to make it a fine paste.
9. Now for the curry. Take  a big kadai or big deep bottem vessel. Heat it over flame and add 2 tablespoon of oil. Insead of making thadka lastly, i prefer making them while cooking which saves some time. So, add 2 tablespoon of oil and allow it to heat. Add mustard seeds, curry leavesand finely chopped onions and saute them till it turns golden brown. The thadka is ready.
10. Add the paste to the thadka and mix well. Also add the kilangu and the tamarind pulp. Mix them nicely by stirring with the help of a big spoon. Add 1- 11/2 cup of water and salt to this and again mix well. Bring it to boil. But do keep a constant check since, coconut grated paste tend to foam and might spill out of vessel while being cooked. Let the gravy to cook for some 15-20 minutes. 
11. Make sure that the it gets cooked nicely, the smell of tamarind and coconut must disappear when its ready. If not cooked nicely , you might feel a pain on the throat while eating it. Tamarind helps this settle down so it should be allowed to cook (boil) nicely for 15-20 minutes.
12. The curry is ready. Serve it hot with rice.

Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking  time: 45 minutes
Serves: 4 persons
Shelflife: 1 day
Serving suggestion: Serve hot with rice and papad.

•  Wash the kilangu nicely before using them. Root vegetable tend to have soil and mud sticking to them.
• Steam the kilagu for 20 minutes and let the steamer cool down so that the vegetable is cooked tender soft.
• Karunai Kilangu has calcium deposit in its roots which gives a pain while consuming them. Tamaraind has the properties which makes those deposits to lay back and avoids causing any pain in the throat.
• Let the gravy boil for some 15 mins on minimum.

Click here to know all about Tamil Nadu cuisines- Introduction To Tamil Nadu Cuisines And Recipes.

A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus, hence the word mushroom is most often applied to those fungi (Basidiomycota, Agaricomycetes) that have a stem (stipe), a cap (pileus), and gills (lamellae, sing. lamella) on the underside of the cap, just as do store-bought white mushrooms. Thats the defination given in wikipedia for Mushroom.

Generally, mushrooms are spore- producing fungal growths, some of which are edible. The most popular ones have a very distinguishable shape, typically a dome cap with gills or lamellae on the underside along with a stem. Though some mushrooms fit that description there are actually many variations in the mushroom family. They come in an assortment of colors, some are bell shaped, others flat, some have stems, some don’t, some are edible, some aren’t, and some grow in the moist earth while others grow on their food source.

Mushrooms are unique. They are neither animal or plant.

Some people consider them plants for various reasons, but they differ from plants in that they lack the green chlorophyll that plants use to manufacture their own food and energy. For this reason they are placed in a Kingdom of their own," The Kingdom of Fungi".

A mushroom is but the fruit of the fungal organism that produces them, just like an apple tree produces apples to bear seeds to ensure the continuation of it's species, so the fungal organism produces mushrooms that carry spores to ensure the continuation of it's own species.

Therefore, the mushroom is the reproductive organ for the fungus.

Mushrooms are very delicate things, they do not last, some have a life span of less than a day others may survive one week, and a group of tougher mushrooms may last months but they have a tough woody texture.

Mushroom Basically is a fungal with or without stem and is widely used for cooking in almost every country. Though Button Mushroom is the common type available in market, apart from it there are several other varities of mushrooms available for cooking purpose. There are some mushrooms which are poisonous too but it can not be termed as deadly poisonous it only effects the stomach and makes a human sick for few days. But many researchers believe there are few wild mushrooms which can be more harmful too.


Many species of medicinal mushrooms have been used in folk medicine for thousands of years. The use of medicinal mushrooms in folk medicine, is best documented in the East. Medicinal mushrooms are now the subject of study for many medical researchers. The ability of some mushrooms to inhibit tumor growth and enhance aspects of the immune system has been a subject of research for approximately 50 years.

Potassium (good for the heart) is also found in mushrooms. It has been suggested a diet with potassium may help to reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke. Copper is another essential mineral found in mushrooms. Copper aids iron (also found in mushrooms) in making red blood cells and delivers oxygen to the body. Mushrooms also contain three B-complex vitamins; riboflavin for healthy skin and vision, niacin aids the digestive and nervous systems, and pantothenic acid helps with the nervous system and hormone production. These vitamins are found in every cell and help to release energy from fat, protein and carbohydrates in food. Vegetarians should know that mushrooms are one of the best sources of niacin. The vitamin content of mushrooms is actually similar to the vitamin content found in meat.

Ingredients:
Button Mushroom - 1 Packet, sliced
Onions - 4 Big Onions, finely chopped or shredded
Tomatoes - 5 Big Tomatoes, finely chopped
Green Peas- 1/2 cup or 5-6 tablespoon
Ginger - Paste or finely chopped, 1/2 teaspoon
Garlic - Paste or finely chopped, 1/2 teaspoon
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Coriander Powder- 1/2 teaspoon, Coarse powder
Red Chilli Powder - 1 Tablespoon
Kasuri Methi Powder(Dried Coriander leaves powder)- 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
Cloves - 4-5 nos
Bay leaves - 2 nos
Oil - 2 tablespoon
Salt - to taste
Coriander leaves - to garnish, 1 tablespoon.



Method:

1. Mushrooms are usually available in Packets which is nicely packed in a plastic transparent case and contains some 15-20 mushrooms in each packet. Before purchasing ensure that it is fresh ones since mushrooms have short life and only fresh ones are good for health or it might cause stomach upset. Buy only Button mushrooms for this recipe. I am enclosing a pic of Button mushroom below for a reference.
   

   

2. Clean the mushrooms properly under water since they tend to have soil particles sticking to them.
3. Let them dry for few minutes.
4. Slice them into 3-4 pieces vertically depending on its size or else chop them each into 3-4 pieces.
5. Chop the onions and tomatoes and keep them aside. Also keep the paste or finely chopped pieces of ginger garlic aside. I prefer fresh paste since, it bends well with gravy dishes and also those who avoid ginger and garlic don't find a problem with it if used as paste.
6. Take a kadai and heat it over flame.
7. Add 2 tablespoon oil and heat it. Add Cumin seeds, allow it to crackle.
8. Add cinnamon, cloves and bay leaves. Saute for a minute over low flame.
9. Add the chopped onions and saute it over high flame till it is soft and turns transparent pink in colour. A pinch of salt can be added while sauting onions , this helps the onions to cook faster an saves time and also add some taste to the onions while sauting.
10. Once the onions are saute, add the chopped tomatoes and saute them till they are soft. This will take some 5 minutes. Tomatoes will give a rich colour while it is being cooked and use only chopped tomaotoes and not puree or paste which might not give the fine texture and tangy taste unlike freshly chopped ones.
11. Saute the tomatoes nicely till they are soft and some water is visible which is a result of sauting of tomatoes.
12. Lower the flame and add cumin powder and coriander powder , both coarsely powdered so as to give a nice aroma and taste. Add the turmeric powder, kasuri methi powder and red chilli powder and saute well till the masalas get mixed properly. Also add the peas and mix well , saute for a minute or two.
    
13. Close the lid of the kadai and cook it in low flame for 6 minutes. Just stir once or twice in this duration, but cook them with closed lid.
14. Open the lid and add the sliced mushrooms and saute well till it gets mixed well with the gravy and masala. But saute them with care since mushrooms are too delicate and might break easily if sauted harshly. Dont add any water since mushrooms leave some moisture when cooked and thats enough for a gravy consistency.
    
15. When the mushroom gets mixed nicely with the masala, close the lid and cook it over low flame for 5 minutes.
16. Open the lid and just stir once.
17. Mattar Mushroom Masala is ready. Garnish it with chopped coriander and serve with rice or roti.
    

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4 persons
Shelflife: Best Fresh
Serving Suggestion: Serve hot with rice or roti as a side dish.


Note:

• Purchase only Fresh Mushrooms , since mushrooms have short life and can cause stomach related problems if they are old stocked up ones.
• Clean the mushrooms properly under tap water and let them dry. Dont chop them finely . Either slice them vertically into 3-4 depending upon its size or cut them into 4 pieces.
• Coarsely powdered cumin and coriander powder will enhance the aroma and tate of the dish.
• Don't add water to this recipe while cooking since tomatoes and mushrooms both leave moisture while being cooked leaving enough water for a gravy.
• Kasuri methi powder can be avoided if not available. It for taste.
• Don't be harsh while sauting the mushrooms. They are very delicate, so just toss them or else stir softly.
  

In my last post, I mentioned that sweet potatoes are used as fasting food by many Maharashtrians. Here is one such simple recipe. In Maharashtra, only simple starchy foods are allowed during fasting times. This starchy foods gives stamina to keep going without letting the meaning of fasting go-by. Sabudhana wada, Aroratachi poli etc are some well known fasting foods of Maharashtrians.

Those staying in Maharashtra must be well know to this recipes. Often most restaurants and Hotels in the city includes fasting recipes in menu especially during Chaturthi and Sankashti. Even groceries stores sell fasting products in most parts of Maharashtra like Rajgira ladoo, Rajgira roti, Sabudhana Wada etc. Special flours are sold in most local grocery stores for fasting purpose like Rajgira flour, Arorat flour, Upvaasachi Bhajni, Mukhane and Mukhane flour etc. I would post fasting recipes in my blog with most of the fasting ingredients available in market.

Today am posting a simple fasting recipe which can be taken during evening time when human body is really exhausted after fasting for long hours. Its a simple recipe and needs very few ingredients and can be cooked fast.




Ingredients:
Sweet Potato - 1/2 kg
Desi Ghee - 1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry Leaves - 10-12 nos
Dry whole red chilly - 2-3 nos
Grated Coconut - 2-3 tablespoon
Salt -to taste.




Method:

1. Wash the vegetable nicely. Root Vegetables tends to have more mud on the skin than any ohter vegetables. So wash properly under tap water.
2. Let them dry or just clean the vegetable using a clean cloth.
3. Steam the Sweet Potato in a pressure cooker for 3 whistles. If you are using steamer then steam it for 15 minutes.
4. Don't remove the sweet potato from the cooker or steamer that sooner. Remove it only after further 15 minutes. This will make the vegetable softer and it will be well cooked inside.
5. Remove them, allow it to cool . But don't wait till its completely cooled or else the skin would be again hard to peel. So wait for 2-3 minutes and then peel the skin. It comes off easily. Just peel it with help of your fingers the way you peel the skin off from boiled potatoes.
6. Once the skin is peeled, cut the sweet potatoes into cubes of 1 inch and keep aside.
7. Take a kadai and keep it over flame. Heat oil in it and add mustard seeds and allow it to crackle.
8. Add dry red chillies, curry leaves and saute for a minute.
9. Add the sweet potatoes and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add salt and saute.
   
10. Spread the grated coconut over it from top and saute well for 2-3 minutes.
11. The dish is ready to be served. Have it as a evening food during fasting times. It is a ideal food for fasting and gives enough stamina for the body.

Preparation Time: 25 minutes
Cooking Time : 7 minutes
Serves : 4 persons
Shelflife: Best fresh
Serving Suggestion: Serve as a evening snack.


Note:

• Fasting foods are meant to be simple without much taste , so avoid masalas and powders. But it still tastes excellent this way. Give it a try.
• Steaming the vegetable before hand makes it easy to peel off the skin. But avoid letting them to cool down completely since it tends to harden fast.
• Oil is avoided during fasting , and only ghee is consumed in fasting food or I have used desi ghee. On normal occasion , oil can be used.